Moderating Effect of Marital Satisfaction on Acculturative Stress and Psychological Distress among Marriage Migrant Women in South Korea

Purpose: This study investigated the moderating role of marital satisfaction in the relationship between acculturative stress and psychological distress among marriage migrant women in South Korea. Methods: We recruited 142 marriage migrant women from a metropolitan city in the southwestern region of the Korean Peninsula and used survey questionnaires to collect information on demographics as well as inventories assessing acculturative stress, psychological distress, and marital satisfaction. Results: We found that acculturative stress significantly affected psychological distress. Marriage migrant women experiencing higher levels of acculturative stress reported greater psychological distress. We further found that marital satisfaction moderated the relationship between acculturative stress and psychological distress. Specifically, low levels of marital satisfaction strengthened the association between acculturative stress and psychological distress. In contrast, among women with high levels of marital satisfaction, the relationship between acculturative stress and psychological distress was still present but relatively weaker. Conclusions: These findings suggest that marital satisfaction is a critical variable that prevents the adverse effects of acculturative stress on psychological distress among marriage migrant women in South Korea.