Evaluation of the Predictive Model of Marital Intimacy Based on Attachment Styles with the Mediation of Love, Empathy, and Passion Styles in Married College Students of Islamic Azad University, Gachsaran Branch, Who Are Married

Abstract

This study was conducted to evaluate the forecasting model of marital intimacy based on attachment styles with the mediation of love, empathy, and passion styles in married students of the Gachsaran branch of the Islamic Azad University. The statistical population included all 1,177 married students (male and female) at Islamic Azad University's Gachsaran branch during the 2016-2018 academic year. The statistical sample consisted of 400 married students selected via stratified random sampling. The applied questionnaires included Marital Intimacy Questionnaire (MIQ), Triangular Love Scale (TLS) and Attachment Styles Questionnaire (ASQ). Path analysis was performed on the data using statistical software SPSS and AMOS version 23. The results demonstrated that secure, empathic, and passionate attachments have a direct and significant relationship with marital intimacy among married students (p<0.01). In addition, the safe, avoidant, and ambivalent attachment styles have a direct significant impact on the empathy of married students (p<0.01). In addition, safe, avoidant, and ambivalent attachment styles have significant direct effects on the empathy and passion of married students (p<0.01). In addition, the results of the Sobel test indicated that the component of empathy mediates the relationship between safe and avoidant attachment styles, whereas the component of passion mediates the significant relationship between avoidant attachment style and marital intimacy (p<0.01). Eventually, the model had a good fit. Considering the mediation function of love styles, family therapists must pay attention to the love styles of married couples in order to increase marital intimacy.

Keywords

• attachment styles
• love styles
• marital intimacy