Assessment of marital satisfaction and interaction.

Assessed the discriminant and criterion-related validity of 2 questionnaire measures of marital satisfaction (the Locke-Wallace Marital Adjustment Scale and Stuart's Marital Precounseling Inventory), as well as the discriminant and criterion-related validity and stability and perceived reactivity of a system for observation of marital interaction in the home. Seven dissatisfied and 6 satisfied couples were administered a marital satisfaction questionnaire, and each couple was observed in their home for 3 ½-hr periods by 2 trained observers. Analysis of the data suggests that there was (a) a high level of stability and discriminant validity for several behavior codes, (b) discriminant validity for the questionnaires, and (c) a moderate degree of self-reported reactivity to the observation process.