How sexuality and religion intersect in highly religious families: implications for clinicians

Integrity and fidelity in highly religious marriages

“…Understanding differing worldviews is particularly important when working with highly religious clients because for many, religion influences every aspect of their reality (Richards & Bergin, 2005). The importance of integrating religiosity and spirituality into clinical practice is well documented (see Clarke, Leavitt, Allsop, et al, 2022;Richards & Bergin, 2005). This study demonstrates the need to answer the question, "Why is talking about integrity and fidelity important in a therapeutic setting?…”

“…The presence of virtues in a marriage appears to be associated with improved marital connection and a high-quality relationship (Galovan et al, 2022;Goddard et al, 2016). Religion tends to support such virtues as marital commitment, a virtue that is conceptually linked with integrity and fidelity (Clarke, Leavitt, Allsop, et al, 2022). As one participant put it, "We made vows to be a couple, to be true to each other, so I have a commitment to monogamy and fidelity.…”

“…As individuals view their relationship as sacred, divine, or set apart from the routine of everyday life they are less likely to cheat or engage in an extradyadic relationship (Mahoney et al, 2022). Although relational sanctification can be considered a psycho‐spiritual construct, or one that can exist in individuals who do not adhere to a religion (Mahoney et al, 2022), recent studies have shown that highly religious couples tend to report sanctification as an important element of their relationship, and in particular their sexual relationship (Clarke, Leavitt, Allsop, et al, 2022; Leavitt et al, 2021; Leonhardt et al, 2023). Because highly religious couples view both marriage and sex as sanctified, fidelity is likely an important component of sanctification.…”