Differentiation of self and relationship attachment, quality, and stability: A path analysis of dyadic and longitudinal data from Spanish and U.S. couples.

OBJECTIVES: In the current study, we examined the relationship between differentiation of self (DoS) and key relationship functioning variables among couples. This is the first study to test such relationships using a cross-cultural longitudinal approach (i.e., samples from Spain and the U.S.) while controlling for stressful life events-a key theoretical construct in Bowen Family Systems Theory. METHODS: A sample of 958 individuals (n = 137 couples from Spain, and n = 342 couples from U.S.) was used in cross sectional and longitudinal models to analyze the effects of a shared reality construct of DoS on anxious attachment, avoidant attachment, relationship stability, and relationship quality while considering gender and culture. RESULTS: Our cross-sectional results indicated that men and women from both cultures experienced an increase in DoS over time. DoS predicted increased relationship quality and stability and decreased anxious and avoidant attachment in U.S. participants. Longitudinally, DoS predicted increased relationship quality and decreased anxious attachment for Spanish women and men, while it predicted greater relationship quality and stability and decreased anxious and avoidant attachment of U.S. couples. Implications of these mixed findings are discussed. CONCLUSIONS: Higher levels of DoS are linked with a better couple relationship across time, despite varying levels of stressful life events. Although some cultural differences regarding the links between relationship stability and avoidant attachment exist, this positive link between differentiation and the couple relationship is mostly consistent across the U.S. and Spain. The implications and relevance for integration into research and practice are discussed.

The direct and indirect effects of family and school-related factors on Latino adolescent substance use.

Latino adolescents continue to have high usages of alcohol and other harmful substances when compared with other ethnic groups (Centers for Disease Control & Prevention, 2005; Telzer, Gonzales, & Fuligni, 2014). This study focuses on the direct and indirect effects of family and school-related factors that impact Latino adolescent substance use comparing male and female groups. Structural equation modeling (SEM) was used to analyze the relationship between maternal monitoring knowledge, the adolescent-teacher relationship, family stress and substance use through academic achievement and school engagement mediators using data from 359 Latino boys and 480 Latina girls from a West Texas area school district. Results indicated that maternal monitoring knowledge was negatively associated with substance use while family stress was positively associated with substance use. Gender differences were found between the influence of maternal monitoring knowledge and academic achievement and among other indirect paths to substance use. Academic achievement completely mediated the relationship between the adolescent-teacher relationship and substance use for both genders while school engagement was also found to be a significant mediator for girls and not boys. Implications are discussed.

The Experience of Learning EFT in Spanish-speaking Countries: A Multi-National Replication Study.

This study is a multi-national follow-up to the original (Sandberg and Knestel (2011) Journal of Marital and Family Therapy, 37, 393-410) article on the process of learning Emotionally Focused Couples Therapy (EFT). A total of 102 clinicians from nine Spanish-speaking countries (Mexico, Costa Rica, Guatemala, Spain, Colombia, Argentina, Chile, Ecuador, and El Salvador) participated in the study. A comparison of results across the two studies revealed more similarities than differences. However, a few notable differences emerged from responses to qualitative questions, namely a heightened sense of appreciation for and resonance with the focus on core emotion in EFT and less frequent reports of difficulty learning and adapting to the model among Spanish-speaking therapists. These differences were consistent with common cultural values and forms of expression in Latin America and Spain. Results are discussed in terms of training, supervision, and future research as well.