Relationship Between Marital Disagreements and Emotional Intimacy: Mediated by Perspective-Taking

Abstract

This study aimed to investigate the mediating role of perspective-taking in the relationship between marital disagreements and emotional intimacy among married individuals. A descriptive correlational research design was used with a sample of 420 married individuals from Hungary, selected based on the Morgan and Krejcie sampling table. Standardized tools were utilized to measure marital disagreements, perspective-taking, and emotional intimacy. Data were analyzed using SPSS-27 for descriptive and correlational statistics, and AMOS-21 for Structural Equation Modeling (SEM). Pearson correlation coefficients assessed the bivariate relationships, and SEM evaluated the proposed mediation model and fit indices. Pearson correlation analysis revealed that marital disagreements were negatively correlated with both perspective-taking (r = −.41, p < .001) and emotional intimacy (r = −.48, p < .001), while perspective-taking was positively correlated with emotional intimacy (r = .52, p < .001). SEM results confirmed a good model fit (χ²/df = 2.10, GFI = 0.94, CFI = 0.96, RMSEA = 0.051, TLI = 0.95). The path analysis showed that marital disagreements had a significant direct negative effect on emotional intimacy (β = −.29, p < .001) and on perspective-taking (β = −.26, p < .001), while perspective-taking had a significant positive effect on emotional intimacy (β = .39, p < .001). The indirect effect of marital disagreements on emotional intimacy through perspective-taking was also significant (β = −.10, p < .001), confirming the mediating role. The findings underscore the detrimental impact of marital disagreements on emotional intimacy and highlight perspective-taking as a crucial cognitive-emotional mechanism that buffers this relationship. Enhancing perspective-taking skills may be a valuable strategy in couple-based interventions aimed at preserving emotional closeness despite conflict.