The mediating role of positive dyadic coping in the association between psychological symptoms and marital satisfaction

The purpose of the current study is to investigate the mediating role of positive dyadic coping in the association between psychological symptoms and marital satisfaction in dual-career married couples living in Türkiye. The sample consisted of 120 dual-career couples (120 women, 120 men) who have been married for at least three months. Participants were recruited via snowball and purposeful sampling techniques. Depression Anxiety Stress Scale, Dyadic Coping Inventory, Marital Satisfaction Scale and a demographic form were used to collect data. The mediating role of positive dyadic coping in the association between psychological symptoms and marital satisfaction was examined via the Actor-Partner Interdependence Model. Independent samples t-test was conducted to determine whether participants' psychological symptoms, positive dyadic coping, and marital satisfaction differed by gender. Pearson product-moment correlation coefficients were calculated to analyze the relationships between the predictor (psychological symptoms), mediator (positive dyadic coping) and criterion variable (marital satisfaction). Results of Actor-Partner Interdependence Model analyzes revealed that association between psychological symptoms and marital satisfaction were mediated by positive dyadic coping for both wives and husbands. As a result, the findings were discussed in connection with the relevant literature, and suggestions for future research were presented.