Marital Compatibility and Satisfaction Study
A comprehensive study assessed the validity of the Compatible Lifestyle Questionnaire-R© (CLQ). One hundred heterosexual couples who were in long term relationships participated in the study.
The concurrent validity of the Compatible Lifestyle Questionnaire-R© was tested by assessing its relationship to a widely accepted criterion measure of relationship contentment and happiness. This was accomplished by determining the extent overall, composite compatibilty scores, as well as the seven individual compatibility scale scores, were positively related to scores for the 100 couples on the "Dyadic Adjustment Scale," (Copyright 1989, 2001 Multihealth Systems). The "Dyadic Adjustment Scale" (DAS) has been used in more than 1000 research studies to assess happiness and contentment in long term relationships. Higher scores indicate higher levels of reported happiness and contentment in the relationship.
Utilizing the items from the CLQ that had been used to compute compatibility scores, composite CLQ compatibility scale scores were significantly positively related to scores on the "Dyadic Adjustment Scale" for men (r=.64, p < .0001, n = 100) and women (r=.61, p < .0001, n = 100). Women and men's scores on the seven CLQ scales were also analyzed separately to determine their relationships with the Dyadic Adjustment Scale. All seven CLQ individual scale scores were also significantly positively related to scores on the "Dyadic Adjustment Scale" at the p < .003 to p < .0001 range for both women and men.
Other results include:
In the initial phase of the study, participants were asked to assess the "extent that you agree that each scale of the Compatible Lifestyle Questionnaire-R assesses the area of compatibility it was designed to measure." Mean scores for all seven scales were in the "agree" range and indicated that study participants agreed that the CLQ measured what it purported to measure (content validity).
The relationship of social desirability to the CLQ and DAS was also assessed in the initial phase of the study. Scores on the Marlowe-Crowne Social Desirability Scale were correlated with scores on the CLQ and with scores on the DAS. Nonsignificant correlations were observed between the CLQ and DAS with the Marlowe-Crowne Social Desirability Scale for both women and men. It can be inferred that responses to the CLQ and DAS were not significantly influenced by a socially desirable response bias in the study.
In the final phase of the study, participants were asked to rate the extent that each compatibility score "accurately reflects," "underestimates," and "overestimates" the "degree of compatibility in my marriage." The results of planned, orthogonal comparisons indicated that that the CLQ accurately assessed overall compatibility and accurately assessed all of the seven specific areas of compatibility it attempted to measure in their relationships (concurrent validity) to at least the p<.005 level of signifcance.
The results from these analyses indicate that the CLQ accurately assesses the construct of compatibility. It is reasonable to infer from this data that, for individuals who are seeking a compatible partner, as compatibility scores increase on the CLQ, the probability of long term relationship happiness and contentment is also likely to increase.
Because the CLQ was normed on heterosexual couples, its validity cannot be assumed for gay or lesbian couples.