Jeff Jackson, a recent Ph.D. graduate in marriage and family therapy at Brigham Young University, was granted the 2010 American Association for Marriage and Family Therapy Dissertation Award for his thesis, “Premarital Couple Predictors of Marital Relationship Quality and Stability: A Meta-Analytic Study.”
The award is given to recognize scholarly achievement by several recent graduates whose research study related to couples and family therapy or family therapy training. He will be honored during the 2010 AAMFT Conference Sept. 23-26, in Atlanta, Ga.
Founded in 1942, the AAMFT is the professional association for the field of marriage and family therapy representing more than 25,000 marriage and family therapists throughout the United States, Canada and abroad.
Initiated in April 2007, Jackson’s research found that couple interaction factors were the strongest predictors of marital relationship quality, and relationship factors were the strongest predictors of marital relationship stability. One of the most noteworthy findings from this study is that no significant differences were identified between females and males for any of the premarital predictive factors.
“These results may potentially improve the quality of marriages by augmenting premarital education and counseling and assisting couples in their decision to marry, both directly through dissemination of study results and indirectly by suggesting revisions to premarital assessment questionnaires,” Jackson said.
His research included a total of 37 unique samples, with a median sample size per study of 184 and a combined total sample size of 36,229 participants.
For more information, contact Jackson at jjackson.mft@gmail.com or visit the American Association for Marriage and Family Therapy Web site at www.aamft.org.
Writer: Brandon Garrett
