A little bit more? The impact of adding booster sessions to a prevention training program for marital distress

Introduction: There is still a lack of indicated prevention programs for co uples who, although subjectively concerned about their relationship, do not seek marital therapy. In a previous study, the efficacy of a cognitive-beh avioral psychoeducational program delivered on a weekend by 2 trainers for groups of 4 couples was established. The program consists of communication and problem-solving training, couples' discussions to clarify their relatio nship expectations, and exercises to enhance their sensual/sexual relations hip. Method: In the current study, the effectiveness of adding two booster sessions with each couple individually 1 and 3 months after the weekend tra ining to the program was investigated, n = 62 couples were recruited by new spaper announcements. Results: At postassessment, couples showed more posit ive and less negative verbal and nonverbal communication behaviors during a conflict discussion task than at preassessment, thus replicating the previ ous findings. At the 1-year follow-up, couples with booster sessions report ed significant higher marital satisfaction ratings and fewer problem areas than couples receiving the weekend program only. Discussion: Booster sessio ns seem to be effective in enhancing the long-term effectiveness of prevent ive interventions.