Comparative Study of Childbearing Pattern in Women with Marital Satisfaction and Marital Dissatisfaction

Abstract

Childbearing pattern has a mutual culture-based relationship with marital satisfaction. The present study aimed to compare the childbearing pattern of women with marital satisfaction and those with marital dissatisfaction in Tehran, Iran. This comparative study was conducted on 196 females during 2015-2016. The participants were divided into two groups of marital satisfaction (Mar-S; n=98) and marital dissatisfaction (Mar-D; n=98). The data were collected using Kansas Marital Satisfaction (KMS) scale. Data analysis was carried out using Chi-square and Mann-Whitney tests in SPSS version 22. The Mar-D group had a significantly higher rate of childbearing intention (P=0.003) and mean number of children (P=0.005), compared to the Mar-S group. The Mar-D group had a higher mean interval between successive births; however, this difference was not significant (P<0.05). The Mar-S group had a significantly higher mean age at marriage (P=0.002) and longer length of marriage (P=0.001) than the Mar-D group. The higher childbearing tendency of women with lower marital satisfaction is a novel finding requiring validation by similar cross-sectional studies.