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ERIC Number: EJ823790
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2008-Oct
Pages: 12
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-0022-006X
EISSN: N/A
Available Date: N/A
Does Marriage and Relationship Education Work? A Meta-Analytic Study
Hawkins, Alan J.; Blanchard, Victoria L.; Baldwin, Scott A.; Fawcett, Elizabeth B.
Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, v76 n5 p723-734 Oct 2008
In this meta-analytic study, the authors examined the efficacy of marriage and relationship education (MRE) on 2 common outcomes: relationship quality and communication skills. A thorough search produced 86 codable reports that yielded 117 studies and more than 500 effect sizes. The effect sizes for relationship quality for experimental studies ranged from d = 0.30 to 0.36, while the communication skills effect sizes ranged from d = 0.43 to 0.45. Quasi-experimental studies generated smaller effect sizes, but these appeared to be due to pretest group differences. Moderate-dosage programs produced larger effect sizes than did low-dosage programs. For communication skills, published studies had larger effects than those of unpublished studies at follow-up; there were no publication differences for relationship quality. There was no evidence of a gender difference. Unfortunately, a lack of racial/ethnic and economic diversity in the samples prevented reliable conclusions about the effectiveness of MRE for disadvantaged couples, a crucial deficit in the body of research. In addition, intervention outcomes important to policy makers, such as relationship stability and aggression, rarely have been addressed.
American Psychological Association. Journals Department, 750 First Street NE, Washington, DC 20002-4242. Tel: 800-374-2721; Tel: 202-336-5510; Fax: 202-336-5502; e-mail: order@apa.org; Web site: http://www.apa.org/publications
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: N/A
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A
Author Affiliations: N/A