Predicting Marital Burnout Based on Negative Affect and Psychological Distress: The Mediating Role of Alexithymia in Couples

Leila Rahmanizadeh; Azade Abooei

Authors

Leila Rahmanizadeh Master student of psychology, Department of Psychology, Faculty of Humanities, Science and Arts University, Yazd, Iran. Author https://orcid.org/0009-0007-0481-0114
Azade Abooei Assistant Professor, Counseling Department, Science and Arts University, Yazd, Iran. Corresponding Author https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9069-041X

Keywords:

marital burnout, negative affect, psychological distress, alexithymia, couples

Abstract

Marital burnout is one of the detrimental consequences of marital relationships that can adversely affect couples’ mental health and quality of life; therefore, identifying the factors contributing to it is of particular importance. The present study aimed to predict marital burnout based on negative affect and psychological distress, with the mediating role of alexithymia in couples. The study population consisted of all couples residing in Yazd. Multistage cluster sampling was employed, and 230 individuals were selected as the final sample. The research instruments included the Pines Marital Burnout Questionnaire (1996), the Positive and Negative Affect Schedule (PANAS; Watson & Tellegen, 1988), the Psychological Distress Scale (Kessler et al., 2002), and the Toronto Alexithymia Scale (Bagby, Parker, & Taylor, 1994). Data were analyzed using Pearson correlation and structural equation modeling (SEM) with SPSS 27 and AMOS 26. The results indicated that the direct effect of negative affect on marital burnout was significant (β = .186, p < .05), the direct effect of psychological distress on marital burnout was significant (β = .312, p < .05), the direct effect of alexithymia on marital burnout was significant (β = .388, p < .05), the direct effect of negative affect on alexithymia was significant (β = .209, p < .05), and the direct effect of psychological distress on alexithymia was significant (β = .559, p < .05). Furthermore, the indirect effect of negative affect on marital burnout through alexithymia was significant (β = .217, p < .05), and the indirect effect of psychological distress on marital burnout through alexithymia was also significant (β = .081, p < .05). Accordingly, the findings highlight the necessity of systematically addressing alexithymia and emotion regulation in the assessment and implementation of couple-therapy interventions aimed at preventing and reducing marital burnout.

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