Moein Farokhtaj, Sayed Ali Marashi, Seyed Esmaeil Hashemi,
Volume 24, Issue 96 (1-2026)
Abstract
Aim: The aim of the present study was to compare the effectiveness of positive psychotherapy and schema therapy on divorce tendency and marital interactions among couples seeking divorce with less than five years of marital life.
Methods: This study employed a quasi-experimental design with two intervention groups (positive psychotherapy and schema therapy) and one control group, conducted in three phases: pre-test, post-test, and follow-up. The statistical population included all couples with less than five years of marriage who referred to counseling centers in Ahvaz in 2023 for divorce proceedings. A total of 45 couples were selected through purposive sampling and were randomly assigned to three groups (15 couples in each group). The control group received no intervention. The positive psychotherapy group participated in eight 90-minute treatment sessions, and the schema therapy group received seven 90-minute intervention sessions. Data were collected using the Divorce Tendency Scale developed by Rosset et al. (1986) and the Marital Interaction Stability Questionnaire designed by Gottman (1999). Data analysis was performed using ANCOVA and repeated-measures ANOVA in SPSS.
Findings: The findings indicated that both schema therapy and positive psychotherapy were effective in reducing divorce tendency and improving marital interactions in couples seeking divorce during the post-test and follow-up phases (p < .001). Positive psychotherapy was more effective than schema therapy in enhancing marital interactions among couples with less than five years of marriage (p < .001). However, schema therapy showed greater effectiveness than positive psychotherapy in reducing divorce tendency (p < .01).
Conclusion: The results demonstrated that positive psychotherapy, by enhancing positive emotions and increasing intimacy, is more effective in improving marital interactions.
