MULTIDIMENSIONAL-SCALING OF SPOUSES ATTRIBUTIONS FOR MARITAL CONFLICTS

Attributional dimensions for marital conflicts were derived using a mu ltidimensional scaling of spouses' explanations for relationships prob lems. Four dimensions for husbands and four dimensions for wives were interpreted by using visual inspection and their relation to attributi onal dimensions drawn from the literature. Most of the dimensions refl ected the locus of factors affecting relationship problems. However th e dimensions seemed to have additional meaning beyond the causal dimen sions used in many past studies Particularly noteworthy were dimension s (one for the husbands and one for the wives) that reflected attribut ions to relationship schism, or the ''poor state of the relationship.' ' Additionally, one of the husbands' attributional dimensions reflecte d a denial of serious problems in the relationship. Initial evidence s uggested that attributional dimensions in the present study were assoc iated with marital distress. The results are interpreted in light of e xisting research, and the implications of the findings for future inve stigations are discussed.