In the study and conceptualization of marriage three major approaches have been used to address and analyse the many dimensions of this dyadic relationship.

The psychodynamic tradition views marriage as a relationship most similar in nature to the early caring experience of the parent child bond. The spouse is expected to be a caring person who meets affectional and dependency needs, offers comfort and reaffirms the partner’s sense of worth. The partners choose each other to complement and supplement themselves as they mutually support each other in the next phase of their development as adults. Marriage creates a safe setting...

The main focus of the Hong Kong Marital Study is to identify and describe patterns of marital transactions in Hong Kong marriages. These patterns are drawn from the accounts provided by the husbands and wives through the use of self report measures and in their responses during interviews. This material has been organized and analysed to reflect the couple’s evaluation of the relationship. The study presents the couple’s own definition of what constitutes a happy mei mun marriage.

The study tests the discriminant capacity, reliability and validity of the DAS, ENRICH and MCLI Packages, the three assessment measures selected for...

The couples interviews commenced with compliments to the spouses for investing time and effort in a review of their relationship, and with an introduction to self report questionaires as providing the structure to enable a comprehensive overview of the multiple facets of married living. After completing ENRICH, the spouses then participated in their first joint session to review various aspects of their relationship. This information was recorded in schedules which had been drawn up as an integral part of the research process.

After the computer analysis of the ENRICH package had been returned from ENRICH-Canada by post the couple were...

The ENRICH marital inventory is one of the scales associated with the Circumplex model which proposes a typology of 16 types of marriage. The ENRICH computer report includes a map showing the spouses’ type of marriage according to their responses on the cohesion and adaptability subscales. Scores on cohesion reflects the balance of separate-togetherness in the marriage which can range from being enmeshed, connected, separated, disengaged. Scores on adaptability reflects the stability-change balance and can range from being rigid, structured, flexible, to chaotic.

The mid-range levels, connected and separated for cohesion and flexible and structured for adaptability, are considered to...

The classification of marriages into patterns is a useful way of grouping together marriages with common characteristics. However, a group which shares some similarities may also have interesting variations in other aspects. Thus an analysis of the marriage of either adjusted and non-adjusted spouses at different points of the marital life cycle is likely to show that their experience at formation could differ substantially from their experience at a later stage. These variations need to be identified, as they indicate the points of stress and satisfaction during the various stages of spousal and family living.

The life cycle framework, which...

Bernard (1982) observed that there are two marriages in every marriage, his and hers. This is also discernible in some aspects of the Hong Kong study, where husbands generally considered their spousal relationship to be more adjusted and more satisfactory than did the wives. The husbands mean score of 106.3 on the DAS was significantly higher than the wives mean DAS at 99.9 (F=3.80, p=.05). Their sense of global satisfaction also differed significantly (F=4.61, p< 05). This trend is also noted in other research studies (Casas and Ortiz, 1985).

From their responses, it would seem that the husbands generally considered...

Within the last generation, Hong Kong has undergone a series of social changes which have had a direct impact on marriage. In 1971, the Marriage Reform Ordinance restricted marriage to one husband and one wife, and formally abolished the traditional concubine, or tsip sze, status. In 1972, the no fault divorce was instituted. In 1990/1, the Law Reform Commission proposed the waiting period for divorce between two consenting parties to be reduced to separation after one year. Other social changes have also indirectly affected marriages. In 1978, compulsory education was instituted for all children up to the age of 15...

Social relations among the Chinese are governed by expectations of interdependence. Except for the parent-child relationship, which is one of commitment regardless of the nature of their transactions, interdependence in other relationships is based on various levels of reciprocity. This includes the relationship of marriage, in which husbands and wives contribute to and receive rights and obligations in complementary exchange. A conjugal relationship becomes increasing committed with the development of emotional interdependence, as with Leung Hung (梁鴻) and Mung Kwong (孟光), characters in a frequently retold Chinese tale illustrative of conjugal love.

Spouses build on their marriage through sharing more...

In their daily life, spouses regularly negotiate with each other over various issues of mutual concern. These exchanges may be overt or covert, active or passive, verbal or behavioral. They may be over small matters, or issues of serious concern. Communication is the life blood of any marriage, and in healthy marriages couples generally manage to establish channels satisfactory to both.

The process can break down in marriages where the confidence of the partners in each other is low, or when extraordinary situations occur within the marriage to threaten the marital balance. This is when the communicative strength of the...