Emotional Divorce between Spouses: Psychological and Social Implications and a Family Counseling Perspective
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.52839/0111-000-091-008Keywords:
Emotional divorce, Psychological effects, Social effectsAbstract
This research aims to determine the level of psychological and social effects of emotional divorce among married couples in Irbid and to identify the statistical differences in terms of gender, age, and years of marriage. The research adopted a descriptive-analytical approach and was applied to a convenience sample of 924 participants residing in Irbid. The results indicated that the level of social effects was high, with a mean score of 3.83, and there was also a high level of psychological effects, with a mean score of 3.83. Moreover, the results showed statistically significant differences in psychological effects in favor of females, while no differences were found between the sexes in social effects. There are statistically significant differences in terms of age and years of marriage, in favor of older age groups (45 years and older) and those married for longer periods (3-5 years). In light of these findings, the research recommends developing specialized preventative and therapeutic guidance programs aimed at repairing emotional bonds and raising community awareness of the invisible effects of silent separation.
Downloads
References
المراجع الأجنبية
[1] Al-Dmour, S. M., & Arabiyat, A. A. (2024). The predictive ability of marital distress in emotional divorce among married teachers in Karak Governorate. Journal of Al-Quds Open University for Educational & Psychological Research & Studies, 9(2), 710-725. https://doi.org/10.46515/jaes.v9i2.710
[2] Alkhawaldeh, M. ., & Alqatawneh, Y. . (2022). Emotional Divorce and its Relationship with Psychological Stress among Married Nurses Working at Jordan University Hospital. Dirasat: Educational Sciences, 49(4), 335–347. https://doi.org/10.35516/edu.v49i4.3344
[3] Al-Shahrani, H. F., & Hammad, M. A. (2023). Impact of emotional divorce on the mental health of married women in Saudi Arabia. PLoS ONE, 18(11), e0293285. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0293285
[4] Cherry, K. E., & Gerstein, E. D. (2021). Fathering and masculine norms: Implications for the socialization of children's emotion regulation. Journal of Family Theory & Review, 13(2), 149-163. https://doi.org/10.1111/jftr.12411
[5] Cook, K. S., Cheshire, C., Rice, E., & Nakagawa, S. (2013). Social exchange theory. In J. DeLamater & A. Ward (Eds.), Handbook of social psychology (pp. 61–88). Springer. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-007-6772-0_3
[6] Dallos, R., & Vetere, A. (2021). Systemic therapy and attachment narratives: Applications in a range of clinical settings (2nd ed.). Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781003080152
[7] Dilla, Y. R., & Wado, R. D. (2024). Understanding the impact of parental divorce onh emotional development in early adolescents: A mixed-methods exploration. Acta Psychologia, 3(2), 81-88. https://doi.org/10.35335/psychologia.v3i2.61
[8] Favez, N., Frascarolo, F., & Tissot, H. (2017). The family alliance model: A way to study and characterize early family interactions. Frontiers in Psychology, 8, 1441. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2017.01441
[9] Fincham, F. D., & Beach, S. R. H. (2010). Of memes and marriage: Toward a positive relationship science. Journal of Family Theory & Review, 2(1), 4–24. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1756-2589.2010.00033.x
[10] Fraser, J. S., Solovey, A., Grove, D., & Lee, M. Y. (2012). Integrative families and systems treatment: A middle path toward integrating common and specific factors in evidence-based family therapy. Journal of Marital and Family Therapy, 38(3), 515-528. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1752-0606.2011.00228.x
[11] George, C. (2014). Attachment theory: Implications for young children and their parents. In K. Brandt, B. Perry, & E. Tronick (Eds.), Infant and early childhood mental health (pp. 97–110). American Psychiatric Publishing. https://doi.org/10.1176/appi.books.9781585625291.lg06
[12] Goldenberg, I., Stanton, M., & Goldenberg, H. (2016). Family therapy: An overview (9th ed.). Cengage Learning.
[13] Gottman, J. M., & Gottman, J. S. (2018). The science of couples therapy: Theoretical and empirical foundations. W. W. Norton & Company.
[14] Johnson, S. M. (2019). Attachment theory in practice: Emotionally focused therapy (EFT) with individuals, couples, and families. Guilford Publications.
[15] Knudson-Martin, C., & Huenergardt, D. (2010). A socio-emotional approach to couple therapy: Linking social context and couple interaction. Family Process, 49(3), 369–384. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1545-5300.2010.01328.x
[16] Mahmoudpour, A., Rayesh, N., Ghanbarian, E., & Rezaee, M. (2021). Effectiveness of acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT) on emotional regulation and loneliness of divorced women in Iran. Journal of Marital and Family Therapy, 47(3), 734-747. https://doi.org/10.1111/jmft.12492
[17] Mikolajczak, M., Aunola, K., Sorkkila, M., & Roskam, I. (2023). The emotional core of parental burnout: The role of marital dissatisfaction and emotional divorce. Journal of Child and Family Studies, 32(4), 1120–1135. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10826-022-02456-4
[18] Mikulincer, M., & Shaver, P. R. (2016). Attachment in adulthood: Structure, dynamics, and change (3rd ed.). Guilford Press.
[19] Minuchin, S. (2018). Families and family therapy. Routledge.
[20] Okonkwo, K. (2024). The role of attachment styles in marital stability: A psychological approach to strengthening relationships. American Journal of Psychology, 6(4), 35-50. https://doi.org/10.47672/ajp.2474
[21] Rusbult, C. E., Agnew, C. R., & Arriaga, X. B. (2012). The investment model of commitment processes. In P. A. M. Van Lange, A. W. Kruglanski, & E. T. Higgins (Eds.), Handbook of theories of social psychology (pp. 218–231). Sage Publications Ltd. https://doi.org/10.4135/9781446249222.n37
[22] Sadeghi, A., & Babaeei, M. (2015). Investigating the relationship between emotional divorce and marital satisfaction (in teachers at city of Rasht, Guilan, Iran). International Journal of Current Research, 7(12), 24569-24575. http://www.journalcra.com
[23] Scheeren, P., Vieira, R. V. A., Goulart, V. R., & Wagner, A. (2014). Marital quality and attachment: The mediator role of conflict resolution styles. Paidéia (Ribeirão Preto), 24(58), 177-186. https://doi.org/10.1590/1982-43272458201405
[24] Suleiman, Y. S. O. (2022). Emotional divorce and its impact on the quality of psychological life among a sample of women attending family courts [in Arabic]. Journal of the Higher Institute of Qualitative Studies, 2(2), 979–1025. https://doi.org/10.21608/HISS.2022.315797
[25] Zamani, Z. A., Nasir, R., Hashim, R. S., & Yusof, N. M. (2012). Effects of demographic variables on marital satisfaction. Asian Social Science, 8(9), 46-52. https://doi.org/10.5539/ass.v8n9p46.
Downloads
Published
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2026 Journal Of Educational and Psychological Researches

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.