Clergy Marriages: A Multivariate Model of Marital Adjustment

Abstract

This was a study of marital adjustment among clergy who had attended a Presbyterian seminary and their spouses (N= 247). The proposed explanatory model that was tested was composed of earner status (dual or single earner families), role orientation, perceived stress related to work, perceived stress from family, perceived stress from the combination of work and family, and gender. Hierarchical regression procedures revealed that the model explained 15% of the total variance in marital adjustment (control variables explained 2% of this variance). In order of predictiveness, the relevant factors were: (a) perceived stress from work and family, (b) number of children age 5 and younger, (c) perceived stress from family, and (d) earner status. Implications of these findings are discussed.