THE EFFECT OF INTRACOUPLE COPING CONCORDANCE ON PSYCHOLOGICAL AND MARITAL DISTRESS IN INFERTILITY PATIENTS

The effect of intracouple coping concordance on psychological and mari tal distress was examined in a sample of 46 couples undergoing differe nt stages of infertility treatment. Results indicate that the effect o f coping similarity within couples is dependent on both the type of co ping examined and the stage of the stressor. Specifically, for women t he use of high levels of task-oriented coping by their partners and th emselves is associated with the highest level of marital satisfaction. The findings also indicate that the use of high emotion-oriented copi ng by both partners is associated with the most psychological distress for men. Finally, the results show that marital satisfaction among wo men undergoing late stage treatment is highest in couples where the ma les are using low levels of emotion-oriented coping. Interestingly, th e least satisfaction for women is evident when,the woman is using less emotion-oriented coping while her partner is using more, rather than when both partners are using more emotion-oriented coping strategies. Clinical implications of the findings are discussed.