نویسندگان:

راحله مهدویان فرد¹ ، سید امیر امین یزدی² ، سید علی کیمیایی³ ، حسین کارشکی⁴ .

¹دانشجوی دکتری مشاوره، گروه روانشناسی مشاوره و تربیتی ، دانشگاه فردوسی مشهد، مشهد، ایران

²گروه روانشناسی مشاوره و تربیتی، دانشکده علوم تربیتی و روانشناسی دانشگاه فردوسی مشهد، مشهد، ایران.

³دانشگاه فردوسی مشهد

⁴گروه روان‌شناسی مشاوره و تربیتی، دانشکده علوم تربیتی و روان‌شناسی دانشگاه فردوسی مشهد، مشهد، ایران

چکیده فارسی: تجربة یک رابطه‌ی سالم و ماندگار، حاصل تأثیر متقابل بین عوامل روان‌شناختی درونی و کیفیت تعاملات بین فردی است. هدف پژوهش حاضر تدوین مدل سرخوردگی زناشویی بر اساس سبک های پردازش حسی با میانجی‌گری ظرفیت ذهنی‌سازی بود. بدین منظور از بین زنان و مردان متأهل شهر مشهد، 409 نفر به روش نمونه گیری در دسترس  داوطلبانه انتخاب شدند. در این پژوهش از طرح توصیفی – همبستگی مبتنی از نوع تحلیل مسیر استفاده شد. شرکت کنندگان به پرسشنامه‌های سرخوردگی زناشویی Kayser (1993)، پرسشنامه عملکرد بازتابی Fonagy et al. (2016) و پرسشنامه سبک­های پردازش حسی Brown and Dunn (2002)پاسخ دادند. داده‌ها با استفاده از نرم‌افزارهای SPSS و AMOS و در چارچوب مدل‌سازی معادلات ساختاری (SEM) تحلیل شدند. نتایج پژوهش نشان داد سبک پردازش حساسیت‌پذیری‌حسی (132/0) و ظرفیت ذهنی‌سازی  (20/0-) دارای اثر مستقیم معنادار بر سرخوردگی زناشویی بودند. همچنین سبک جستجوگری حسی (041/0-)، ثبت پایین (040/0)، اجتناب‌گری حسی (058/0-) و حساسیت‌پذیری‌حسی (028/0-) به واسطه ظرفیت ذهنی‌سازی اثر غیرمستقیم و معناداری بر سرخوردگی زناشویی داشتند. یافته‌ها حاکی از آن است که توجه به سبک‌های پردازش حسی و ظرفیت ذهنی‌سازی می‌تواند درک عمیق‌تری از فرایندهای روان‌شناختی مؤثر بر کیفیت روابط زناشویی فراهم آورد و مبنایی برای طراحی مداخلات پیشگیرانه و درمانی باشد.

کلمات کلیدی: ظرفیت ذهنی‌سازی ، سرخوردگی زناشویی ، سبکهای پردازش حسی .

Developing a Model of Marital Disaffection Based on Sensory Processing Style With the Mediation of Mentalizing Capacity

English Abstract: Introduction Marriage is recognized as the most fundamental form of intimate connection in all societies (Wardle, 2011). One of the recent challenges in couple relationships is marital disaffection, which is replacing neutral or negative emotions with positive emotions in marital relationships (Dollahite et al., 2019).  Research has shown that personality traits are directly related to the quality of relationships and the occurrence of couples’ disaffection (Arefi et al., 2014). Sensory processing, as a personality trait, plays a central role in how a person perceives environmental stimuli and the type of response to them (Sadoughi et al., 2007). Dunn (2001) introduced four sensory processing styles. In the sensory seeking style, people with a high neural threshold and active response seek stronger stimuli and enjoy stimulating activities (Zuckerman, 2007). In the low registration style, people react slowly and passively to stimuli and are weak in understanding their own or others’ emotions (Lee & Park, 2020). In the sensory avoiding style, people with a low neural threshold are sensitive to stimuli and try to limit their exposure to them. Finally, the sensory sensitivity style is characterized by a low nervous threshold and passive response; people are prone to strong emotional reactions to conflicts, criticism, or rejection (Zorlular et al., 2022). On the other hand, studies have shown that weaknesses in mentalization, which refers to an individual’s ability to understand and interpret their own and others’ mental states such as beliefs, intentions, emotions, and desires (Fonagy et al., 2019), are associated with difficulty in regulating emotions, increased misperceptions, and the emergence of disrupted communication patterns in close relationships (McCann, 2022). Simultaneously examining sensory processing styles and mentalization capacity within the context of marital relationships can help to more comprehensively understand the mechanisms that influence the occurrence of marital disaffection and pave the way for designing more targeted clinical interventions that are compatible with the cultural context of Iranian couples. The current research question is whether mentalization capacity plays a significant mediating role in the relationship between sensory processing styles and marital disaffection in married individuals. Method The present study was a correlational study (i.e., path analysis), which examined the relationships between variables in the form of a causal model. The statistical population was married men and women in Mashhad, aged 20 to 55 years, who had been married for at least two years. The criterion for determining the sample size was the Soper formula (2020), which was calculated with the medium effect size (0.19), test power (0.80), number of latent variables (4 variables), and number of manifest variables (107 questions). The minimum required sample size was 382 individuals. A total of 409 individuals were selected from the statistical population of the study using voluntary convenience sampling method. These individuals filled out the research questionnaires, which consisted of the Kayser Marital Disappointment Scale (1993), the Fonagy et al. Reflective Functioning Questionnaire (RFQ) (2016), and the Brown and Dunn Sensory Processing Style Questionnaire (2002), via a link on the Porseline platform. Of these, 380 (92.9%) were female and 29 (7.1%) were male. The mean and standard deviation of the age of female participants were 29.03 and 6.78, respectively, and those of male participants were 39.93 and 8.563, respectively. The mean and standard deviation of all participants were 29.78 and 7.434, respectively. Descriptive statistics (e.g., mean, standard deviation, and Pearson correlation coefficient) were used to analyze the data, and structural equation modeling was used to examine the fit of the research model. These analyses were performed using SPSS software (version 27) and AMOS software (version 26). Findings  Initially, the assumptions of using structural equation modeling (i.e., data normality, linearity of the relationship between variables, lack of collinearity between predictor variables, and independence of errors) were examined. According to the criteria proposed by Kline (2016) and West et al. (1995), skewness values less than ±2 and kurtosis less than ±2 indicate an acceptable normal distribution in psychological samples. The skewness values of all variables are in the range of less than ±2 and kurtosis less than ±2; therefore, the assumption of normal data distribution was met. The scatter plots of the relationship between the predictor and mediator variables with the criterion variable indicated the existence of a linear relationship between them. Therefore, the assumption of the linearity of the relationships was also met. The VIF index was used to examine the lack of collinearity between the predictor variables. Based on the criteria proposed by Hair et al. (2019) and Kline (2016), VIF values less than 5 indicated the absence of collinearity in the model. In this study, all VIF values were within the acceptable range. The Durbin-Watson statistic was also used to examine the assumption of independence of errors. In this analysis, it was obtained as 1.88, which is within the acceptable range (between 1.5 and 2.5). Thus, there was no autocorrelation between errors and the assumption of independence of errors was met (Field, 2018; Hair et al., 2019). Therefore, all assumptions of structural equation modeling were valid. In evaluating the initial conceptual model, the fit indices indicated that the model needed modification (see Table 1). Based on the high values of the modification indices and theoretical considerations, four two-way paths between the sensory processing subscales were added to the model. These paths included the relationship between sensory seeking and sensory avoiding, low registration and sensory sensitivity, low registration and sensory avoiding, and sensory avoiding and sensory sensitivity.   Discussion and conclusion  The present study aimed to develop a model of marital disaffection based on sensory processing styles mediated by mentalization capacity. The results showed that mentalization capacity could have a significant mediating role in the relationship between sensory processing styles and marital disaffection. Sensory processing styles also had a direct and indirect effect on marital disaffection through mentalization capacity. These results were consistent with the results of Brown et al. (2022), Zorlular et al. (2022), McCann (2022), Ben-Avi et al. (2012), Forsberg et al., (2025), and Fonagy et al. (2019). Couples who have one or both of the sensory processing styles of sensory avoiding or sensory sensitivity (which overlap with anxiety and insecure attachment) are more likely to experience emotional misperceptions, defensive reactions, avoidance of intimacy, and increased disaffection in the relationship (Jerome & Liss, 2005; Meredith et al., 2016). However, these negative effects are reduced when the individual can better interpret the psychological meaning of their own and their partner’s experiences through mentalization and responding more adaptively in interpersonal interactions (Fonagy et al., 2002). Therefore, the capacity for mentalization is not only a protective factor against the biological-neurological item of sensory processing styles, but can also improve the quality of couple relationships by reducing emotional reactivity and increasing empathy capacity and psychological flexibility (Greenberg et al., 2021; Luyten et al., 2020). The present study was accompanied by limitations. Data collection through self-report instruments, the sample that was selected only from married individuals living in Mashhad, and voluntary available sampling were important limitations of the study. Providing interventions based on increasing the capacity of mentalization in contexts such as family counseling centers, psychotherapy clinics, and also within the framework of premarital education is recommended to improve the quality of couple interactions and prevent emotional erosion in marital relationships. Acknowledgements     The researchers consider it necessary to thank all participants for participating in the research study.   Conflict of Interest This article is taken from the PhD dissertation on counseling at Ferdowsi University and there is no conflict of interest in conducting it.