Limited empirical information exists on whether or not marriage and family therapists are having sexuality-related discussions with their clients. When helping professionals ignore client sexuality, the potential for unintended negative outcomes increases. The researchers surveyed 175 clinical members of the American Association for Marriage and Family Therapy to assess how their clinical training and education, their perceived sexual knowledge, and their comfort with sexual material influenced their willingness to engage in sexuality-related discussions with their clients. The results indicate that sexuality education and supervision experiences are the cornerstone for a therapist's base level of comfort. It is through sexuality education and supervision that sex knowledge is acquired and comfort levels are increased. Once comfort with sexual discussions increases, then therapists are more likely to engage in sexuality discussions with their clients.

Although the caregiving role can be difficult for a spouse, it does not mean that the ADRD has to always negatively impact the marital relationship. Understanding the role that intimacy can play for these couples and how it might contribute to coping strategies for couples affected by ADRD can be a powerful adjunct to other treatments available.

Current literature yields mixed results about the effectiveness of relationship education (RE) with low-income participants and those who experience a high level of individual or relational distress. Scholars have called for research that examines whether initial levels of distress act as a moderator of RE outcomes. To test whether initial levels of relationship and/or individual distress moderate the effectiveness of RE, this study used two samples, one of couples who received couple-oriented relationship education with their partner (n = 192 couples) and one of individuals in a relationship who received individual-oriented RE by themselves (n = 60 individuals). We delivered RE in a community-based setting serving primarily low-income participants. For those attending with a partner, there was a significant interaction between gender, initial distress, and time. Findings indicate that women who were relationally distressed before RE reported the largest pre-postgains. Those who attended an individual-oriented RE program reported significant decreases in individual distress from pre to post, but no significant relationship gains. Findings also suggest that initial levels of distress did not moderate the effectiveness of individual-oriented RE.

In this study, we present the findings of an investigation of the effectiveness of 3 models of premarital education. The study compares the outcomes between a workbook-only self-directed program, a therapist-directed (unstructured) program, and an assessment-based (RELATE) relationship enhancement program. Results revealed significant differences in effectiveness between the 3 approaches at the 6-month follow-up. The assessment-based program had more influence than the therapist-directed and self-directed programs on problem areas and was better than the therapist-directed program at improving communication and relationship satisfaction. Participants indicated that the most helpful aspects of these programs were the opportunity to discuss previously undiscussed issues, improvements in communication, and the perspectives provided by the facilitator.