MAIN ARTICLES IN THIS ISSUE
Please Note: The Australian National Office will close for the Christmas-New Year break on Friday 16th December 2011 and reopen on Monday 9th January 2012. Online Customized Version processing will still be available during this period. VERSION 2000 WILL NOT BE SUPPORTED AFTER 2012 Hard copy Version 2000 processing will cease at the end of 2012. Due to less demand, we will be processing Version 2000 only two days per week in 2012. Since 1996, Version 2000 has been a great tool but it is time to update, improve and embrace new technology. We strongly urge you to begin using the new online Customized Version as soon as possible. All current Version 2000 Administrators have had an account set up so they can begin using the new online Customized Version. If you have not already done so, you may download a free Transition Manual that will provide more detail and help you in the process. This is available on our website at: http://www.prepare-enrich.com.au/CVresources/CVresources.html Please note that this account does not include your email address, so you will need to enter and confirm it when you first log in. To do this log into your account and from the Manage Couples page go to the email tab. If your email address is not listed you will be asked to enter and confirm this. You can also use this tab to alter your email address if necessary. Until you do this you will not receive any notifications of your couples having completed the inventory online. The new online Customized Version has really taken off in Australia since its introduction late in 2009 and over 6,500 Australian couples have already experienced the new version. We have reached the stage where more couples are taking the online version now than those taking Version 2000. The online process is proving to be very easy and efficient for both Facilitators and their couples. The Australian version has been tailor-made for local use and is only available online. Instead of the five versions in the previous hard copy Version 2000, we now have the potential for many different versions based on background questions the couple answers about their relationship. The first main category is the stage of their relationship - whether they are dating, engaged or married. Additional questions relate to their age, living arrangements, cultural and religious differences and whether there are children involved in the relationship, as well as other relevant issues. Depending on the answers to these questions the Customized Version creates the most relevant variety of scales for a particular couple. Feedback from couples and Facilitators has been highly encouraging and consistently indicates that:
NEW LOOK ONLINE COUPLE MANAGEMENT PROCESS We are always striving to provide you with a top quality service and experiences when working with our web-based system. To accomplish this we recently implemented some changes. In November 2011 we re-organized the process to make it simpler, efficient, aesthetically pleasing, and expandable. It also greatly improved our ability to support mobile smart phones and tablets. Security has also been upgraded. Feedback on the new format has been very positive. With few exceptions, all of the same great features are there. They are now just easier to use and access from a wider variety of platforms. Besides just looking better, this new format will also help make it possible for us to eventually offer our full line of translations. We already have Spanish available. When you set up a couple, you select Spanish as the language. The email is then sent in Spanish and the couple will access the site in Spanish. You can then generate the report in both English and Spanish. We intend to add other languages in the future, as they become available (especially Korean and Chinese). One other change is that you can only download a PDF of the Couple Workbook after you have set up a couple and they have completed the inventory. When you access their reports, you will see a link for downloading feedback materials. This link will take you to a set of material, including the Couple Workbook. Remember, there is also a PDF of the Couple Workbook on the Facilitators Manual CD. HUMILITY IMPROVES RELATIONSHIP QUALITY A recent study at the University of Northern Colorado USA, examined the hypothesis that quality social relationships depend, in part, on deferring self-interest to another person or group. Being too arrogant or self-focused could negatively affect relationship quality. Two studies examined possible connections between humility and social relationship quality (SRQ). Participants completed survey measures of each construct. These studies found that self and peer-reported humility correlated positively with SRQ, even when social desirability and other relevant personality dimensions (e.g., Big Five, agency, communion) were statistically controlled. These findings indicate humility could be an important trait with regard to interpersonal relations. The authors stated: “We encourage psychologists and researchers in other related disciplines to consider the role of humility in relationships and other domains. As psychological science has developed, more attention has been placed on negative traits like narcissism, which affect interpersonal relationships, and for good reasons. In contrast to humility, some people think and act like they are the center of the universe (i.e., narcissists). Narcissists have an unstable overly positive sense of self that could, over time, be relationally repulsive…These two studies reveal humility as positively associated with relationship quality even when the positive effects of other personality dimensions were taken into account. Humbly recognizing one cannot control others and being patient, gentle, and empathic with others facilitates relational wellbeing.” Reference: Annette Peters, Wade C. Rowat, Megan K. Johnson (2011). Associations between Dispositional Humility and Social Relationship Quality. Psychology, 2,155-161. PERSONALITY AND COUPLE SATISFACTION A recent study summarized on the website of Prepare-Enrich USA examined the relationship between personality and marital satisfaction and partner pairing. A national sample of 10,000 married couples took the PREPARE-ENRICH couple assessment and the results were examined to determine whether couples with similar personalities were more satisfied in their marriage than couples with dissimilar personalities and whether individuals were more likely to pair with someone with a similar personality or different personality. The goal of this study is to examine the effects of partner personality on marital satisfaction. Using the SCOPE personality scales from the PREPARE‐ENRICH assessment, personality traits can be examined in relation to individual and couple marital satisfaction. SCOPE is an acronym for the five factor model of personality, consisting of five scales: Social (extraversion), Change (openness), Organized (conscientiousness), Pleasing (agreeableness), and Emotional Stability (low neuroticism). Couple types were divided into four categories: those both scoring high, both scoring low, both scoring moderate, and one scoring high-one scoring low on each of the five scales of personality. Results indicate that there is no relationship between personality similarities/differences and marital satisfaction, and that individuals are 66% more likely to pair with someone with a different personality than their own. However, personality similarities/differences do play a role in judgment of marital satisfaction, as those couples who both score high in each of the five dimensions of personality were significantly more satisfied in their relationship than those who both scored low. Reference: Adrienne Kaufman (2011). Personality, Partner Similarity and Couple Satisfaction: Do Opposites Attract or Birds of a Feather Flock Together? Prepare-Enrich – USA. WORKING WITH CONFLICTED COUPLES - AN AUSTRALIAN RESOURCE STUDY Couples’ experiences of family of origin are an important area for investigation among couples taking PREPARE. A booklet by Dr Alan Craddock (National Coordinator of PREPARE-ENRICH Australia and Honorary Senior Lecturer in the School of Psychology, The University of Sydney) has been written solely for PREPARE-ENRICH Administrators. This booklet is entitled Origins: Family Experiences of Premarital Couples. It aims to identify the different types of premarital couples in a large national sample of Australian couples participating in the PREPARE program. The study examines the differences in family background of Vitalised versus Conflicted premarital couples. Of major interest is any link between negative experiences within family of origin in the past (separateness, rigidity and exposure to abuse) and present difficulties in couple relationship. The practical implications of these findings for work with conflicted premarital couples are explored. These areas for work are not based on biased speculation but are identified by means of careful investigation of the research data. An addendum is included in which the relevance of this material (the study is based on Version 2000 data) to the new Customized Version is described. The cost is only $12 and this includes postage and GST. To order this booklet call (02) 9545 4566 or email us at info@prepare-enrich.com.au |
| Editor: Dr. Alan Craddock, National Coordinator of Prepare-Enrich (Australia). |