Development and Validation of Interpersonal Patterns Scale for Married Couples

Abstract

Marital relationships in Pakistan are shaped by collectivist cultural norms, extended family involvement, and traditional gender roles, necessitating culturally sensitive tools to assess interpersonal patterns (IPs). Existing Western scales, such as the Dyadic Adjustment Scale, often fail to capture these nuances, highlighting the need for an indigenous Interpersonal Patterns Scale (IPS) tailored for Pakistani married couples. This study aimed to develop and validate the IPS to measure adaptive and maladaptive IPs within Pakistan’s socio-cultural context, addressing a critical gap in marital research. A mixed-method design was employed, combining qualitative and quantitative approaches. In Phase 1, phenomenological interviews with 18 married individuals and three therapists generated an initial pool of 77 items, refined to 37 through thematic analysis. Phase 2 established content validity using a Content Validity Index (CVI) with three expert therapists. A pilot study in Phase 3 tested the scale’s user-friendliness with 20 participants. In Phase 4, psychometric properties were assessed with 300 married individuals (150 couples) using Exploratory Factor Analysis (EFA), alongside concurrent validity with the ENRICH Marital Satisfaction Scale and Revised Adult Attachment Scale. EFA revealed a two-factor structure: Healing Interpersonal Pattern (29 items, α = .97) and Sociocultural Interpersonal Pattern (8 items, α = .89), explaining 58.46% of the variance. The scale demonstrated strong content validity (S-CVI = 1.00), split-half reliability (r = .80–.85), and concurrent validity, with Healing IPs positively correlated with marital satisfaction (r = .69, p < .01) and close attachment style (r = .21, p < .01), and Sociocultural IPs linked to anxious attachment style (r = .34, p < .01). The IPS effectively captures Pakistan-specific marital dynamics, offering a reliable tool for research and clinical interventions.