SOCIAL SKILLS OF COUPLES AT DIFFERENT STAGES OF THE FAMILY LIFE CYCLE

Abstract

Traditionally, the cycle of family life is marked by stages and the spouses experience challenging situations in daily life, difficulties and transformations associated with the development of marriage which require various skills. This study aimed to investigate if there are differences in social skills and marital social skills of couples in different stages of the family life cycle. The participants were 442 heterosexual individuals with ages ranging between 21 and 79 years (M = 43.7, SD = 12.25). The instruments used were Social Skills Inventory and the Marital Social Skills Inventory. A MANOVA was performed to investigate differences between groups. The results showed significant differences in social skills between couples without children and couples with children between 0 and 11 years old and in social skills between couples with children older than 18 years old and the other groups. It is concluded that there is differences on the social skills of individuals in the period of arrival of children and greater elaboration of conjugal social skills in couples whose children are independent. It is expected to contribute to the development of trainings of conjugal social skills and preparatory resources for married life that promote healthy and quality-of-life relationships.