Marital Distress and Satisfaction During the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Systematic Review

Abstract

COVID-19 pandemic brings tremendous impact on families, particularly on marital relationship. This paper reported findings on systematic review concerning the stressor and psychological problem encountered by married couples. We search in the Google Scholar database using the following keywords "marital satisfaction" and pandemic. We selected articles that met the inclusion criteria: original article, written in English, and fulltext available. From six articles that had been reviewed, we found out that either husband or wife are prone to domestic violence, working from home increase marital conflict because couples spend more time together every day and begin to know each other which often led to conflict. Fear of COVID-19 transmission influence sexual relationships and intimacy which subsequently reduce marital satisfaction. Marital distress and marital dissatisfaction were higher in couples who thoughts their spouses were irresponsive to their situation as marital conflict increased. Couples who believed that their spouses were responsive to their situation reported less marital distress and conflict and higher marital satisfaction. We conclude that during the COVID-19 pandemic, marriages are at risk and need psychoeducation supports designed for couples, particularly to improve their marital adjustment and communication, emotion regulation, managing conflict, problem solving, and building intimacy during crisis.

Marital Adjustment, Gender Role Partnerships, and Marital Satisfaction During Covid-19

“…Besides that, it can reduce the warmth of husband and wife relationships and decrease satisfaction and marital stability (Kerkman et al, 2000). The income status of both husband and wife can be a factor in achieving marital satisfaction and reducing stress within the family (Epifani et al, 2020). Therefore, family financial management is very important, especially with the Covid-19 pandemic.…”

Mediating role of psychological distress and domestic violence in the association of fear of COVID-19 with marital satisfaction and sexual quality of life among women of reproductive age: An Iranian cross-sectional study

“… 39 Based on a recent systematic review, it was reported that the fear of COVID-19 influenced sexual relationships and intimacy and reduced marital satisfaction. 40 Turliuc and Candel reported that a combination of an external stressor like fear of COVID-19 with an internal stressor like socioeconomic status can lead to different responses regarding marital satisfaction. They reported that men and women responded differently during a crisis and that couples with lower socioeconomic status are more prone to greater stress and lower levels of marital satisfaction.…”

“…Similarly, it appears that domestic violence increased due to quarantine and spatial distancing during the COVID-19 outbreak 39. Based on a recent systematic review, it was reported that the fear of COVID-19 influenced sexual relationships and intimacy and reduced marital satisfaction 40. Turliuc and Candel reported that a combination of an external stressor like fear of COVID-19 with an internal stressor like socioeconomic status can lead to different responses regarding marital satisfaction.…”

From economic difficulties to psychological maladjustment in Italian women during the Covid-19 pandemic: does marital dissatisfaction moderate or mediate this association?

“…During the pandemic, economic difficulties and financial strain also harmed couple relationships by promoting greater dissatisfaction with marriage and lower relationship commitment, resulting in more frequent conflicts (see Epifani et al, 2021 for a review). For example, Balzarini et al (2020) showed how economic difficulties, perceived stress, and confining lockdown measures were negatively associated with the couple’s relationship quality.…”

“…The second aim is to explore the potential spillover effect from economic difficulties to women’s psychological maladjustment by considering the serial mediation of perceived stress and marital dissatisfaction. In other words, based on the literature ( Epifani et al, 2021 ; Friedline et al, 2021 ; Hertz-Palmor et al, 2021 ), we hypothesized that economic difficulties during the Covid-19 outbreak could predict the onset of higher levels of perceived stress which, in turn, negatively affects the couple’s relationship with consequences for psychological adjustment.…”