Community Health Journal

Community Health Journal

Effects of Cognitive-Behavioral and Mindfulness Therapy on Marital Justice and Covert Aggression in Maladjusted Couples

Document Type : Original Article

Authors
N Bagheri Magham 1
M Etemadi-Nia 2
A Khademi 3
1 PhD Student in General Psychology, Dept. of Psychology, Urmia Branch, Islamic Azad University, Urmia, Iran
2 Assistant Prof., Dept. of Psychology, Urmia Branch, Islamic Azad University, Urmia, Iran
3 Prof., Dept. of Psychology, Urmia Branch, Islamic Azad University, Urmia, Iran
10.22123/chj.2026.514834.2177
Abstract
Introduction: Incompatible couples face many problems in their married life, especially in the areas of covert aggression and quality of marital life. Therefore, this study aimed to compare the effectiveness of cognitive-behavioral therapy and mindfulness therapy on marital justice and covert aggression in maladjusted couples.
Material and Methods: This was a quasi-experimental study with a pre-test, post-test and control group design with a 2-month follow-up. All maladjusted couples who referred to Dr. Rouhi's Psychological Clinic in Tehran in 2022 constituted the statistical population of the study, consisting of 120 couples; out of which, 48 were selected through convenience sampling and randomly assigned to three equal groups. Data collection was done using Spanier's MAQ, Ghaffari et al.'s MJQ, and Nelson & Carroll's CAQ. Therapeutic interventions were applied during 8 90-minute sessions for the experimental groups. The control group did not receive any intervention. Data were analyzed by two-way repeated measures ANOVA.
Results: The scores of distributional justice (η=0.238, F=24.410), interactional justice (η=0.305, F=9.229), marital justice (η=0.529, F=23.585), love withdrawal (η=0.505, F=21.393), social sabotage (η=0.510, F=21.851), and covert aggression (η=0.684, F=45.549) significantly improved in the test groups in the post-test stage compared to the control group and, this improvement remained stable in the follow-up stage (p<0.05). Also, the results of Benferroni's post hoc test showed no significant difference between the two treatment approaches in terms of effectiveness (p>0.05).
Conclusion: According to the mentioned results, therapists, counselors, and psychologists can use cognitive/behavioral and mindfulness-based therapeutic approaches to reduce the covert aggression and increase the marital life quality of vulnerable groups, including women suffering from marital maladjustment.
Keywords
Cognitive/behavioral therapy
Mindfulness therapy
Covert aggression
Marital justice
Maladjusted
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Community Health Journal
Volume 19, Issue 3
Winter 2026
Pages 46-60