MARITAL PATHOLOGY - DEFINITION AND EXTENT OF MARITAL PATHOLOGY

Any definition of marital pathology must consider both the stability and the quality of a marriage. Appreciable conflict or alienated indifference produce marital pathology, as do repeated departures and a final separation. But marriages where a couple never stop arguing, or where affection, companionship, and sex have ceased may be stable; the marriage bond survives and has a meaning for the couple.1 Thus marital pathology exists when the minimum needs of one or both partners are not met. Then separation and divorce are contemplated, and eventually realised, unless change occurs. © 1979, British Medical Journal Publishing Group. All rights reserved.