Table 1 All studies included in the meta-analysis
Serial no, first author, year and country | Participants | Interventions | Durations | Scales | Outcomes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Education/communication skill programs | |||||
1. Kroger, 2017 Germany [6] | 32 distressed couples | Relationship education program | 2 consecutive days | PQ & PQ | Relationship satisfaction and communication skills scores were improved, with moderate to large effects only for soldiers rather than their partners. |
2. Li, 2015 China [30] | 70 non-distressed couples | Couple relationship education (CRE) programs | Weekends of 2 consecutive weeks | CSI & Enrich | Workshop was effective in improving relationship outcomes, including relationship satisfaction and communication skills. |
3.Allen, 2011 United States [26] | 476 non-distressed couples | Relationship education for (Prevention and Relationship Education Program | 2 days workshop | KMS & CST | Positive intervention effects for satisfaction and communication skills, with sacrificing for the marriage or the partner. |
4. Einhorn, 2010 United States [31] | 149 distressed couples | Relationship education program | 3 Saturday workshops | DAS & CST | The workshop helped improve positive bonding and communication skills for our sample |
5. Alvaro, 2001 United States [32] | 46 distressed couples | A forgiveness intervention | 1-day seminar | EMSS & Enrich | Results suggested the intervention was efficacious in relationship satisfaction and communication skills. |
Enhancement | |||||
6.Young-Ran, 2012 Korea [17] | 16 non-distressed couples | Marital relationship enrichment program | 6 weeks | IMS & MCI | Marital satisfaction and communication skills increased significantly after the program in the experimental group compared with the control group. |
7.Kong, 2005 Korea [18] | 70 non-distressed couples | Marital relationship enhancement program (MREP) | 5 weeks | MSS & CDF | Participants in the experimental group showed significant improvements in marital satisfaction and communication skills compared to the control group. |
8.Halford, 2000 Australia [33] | 83 non-distressed couples | Self-Regulatory Prevention and Relationship Enhancement Program | 5 weeks | DAS | High-risk couples receiving Self-PREP exhibited higher relationship satisfaction at 4 years than control couples. |
Therapy | |||||
9. Doss, 2016 United States [34] | 300 distressed couples | Integrative behavioral couple therapy (IBCT) | Eight-hour online program | CSI | Compared to the waitlist group, intervention couples reported significant improvements in relationship satisfaction. |
10. Hrapczynski, 2008 United States [35] | 50 non-distressed couples | Cognitive behavioral couple therapy (CBCT) | 10 weeks | DAS & MICS | Increased relationship satisfaction and communication skills were shown in intervention compared to the control group. |
11. Carson, 2004 United States [36] | 44 non-distressed couples | Mindfulness-based relationship enhancement | 8 weeks | QMI | Results suggested the intervention was efficacious in (a) favorably impacting couples’ levels of relationship satisfaction. |
12. Shapo, 2003 United States [37] | 43 distressed couples | Support-focused marital therapy (SFMT) | 12 weeks | DAS | The SFMT group experienced significantly greater improvements in Marital satisfaction as compared with the control group. |