Family satisfaction, communication and emotional intelligence

Abstract

In general, for the development of people and society, the family institution is a fundamental pillar. One of the most important social motivations of the human being developed during childhood is the affiliation: maintain positive affective relationships with other people. In addition, one of the vital affections in the human being is the couple’s relationship since it allows satisfying basic needs and in turn establishing patterns of development and behavior.

Based on the model of family instability proposed by Rodríguez, Rodríguez-Mateo and Luján (2015), the present work has several objectives: first, to know if the family variables interrelated in said model (family stress, family communication, family resources, family satisfaction and marital instability) can be related to a new variable (Emotional Intelligence); and secondly, to obtain posible influences and interactions, trying to replicate the model proposed by said authors.

This research is focused on the search of the different degrees of association or relationship that exists between a relevant group of variables present in the family environment with satisfaction and marital instability. This set of variables related to the family life cycle (family communication, family resources, family stress) directly affect family relationships and is associated with different degrees of well-being in families. In addition, a new variable has been added with respect to the study on the model of family instability in the breakup of a partner (Rodríguez, Rodríguez-Mateo and Luján, 2015), emotional intelligence, to verify its relationship with marital stability. Through different scales we want to evaluate these relationships and check whether these factors (stress, communication, resources and emotional intelligence) have a direct impact on family satisfaction and stability.

The instruments used in the present research work, to operationalize the variables to be studied, have been compiled from the Manual of Family Assessment Instruments (2008) published by the University of Deusto and the Scale of Self-Reported Emotional Intelligence (TMMS-24) of Extremera and Fernández Berrocal (2004).

The sample corresponds to a group of 96 people, whose inclusion criteria were family group membership and no cognitive difficulty to perform the questionnaires that are attached.

The data analysis techniques used have been the correlational analysis between family variables, multiple linear regression, structural model proposal analysis through the confirmation of relationships between variables (confirmatory model), and confirmatory factor analysis.

Two factors were observed, total communication and total resources, as predictors of total satisfaction. It has been possible to obtain a confirmatory model that explains the variables associated with family satisfaction through the AMOS program. It is still postulated, through confirmatory factor analysis, the variable family experience as “injector” of the other variables.

The results support a new explanatory model of relationship between these variables and confirm the predictive power of communication and family resources in family satisfaction. The aim of this study is to offer intervention professionals new information to improve their performance with families and to provide greater efficiency in their actions.