Scott Stanley
Research Professor, Clinical Child

I have specialized in research in two key areas: (1) the prevention of marital distress and divorce and (2) commitment and couple development in relationships, especially marriage. Howard Markman and I have worked together on research, development, and refinement of the Prevention and Relationship Enhancement Program (PREP) for over 25 years. PREP is a marital distress prevention and marital education curriculum that is based on research (being both empirically informed in its strategies and empirically tested in ongoing outcome research). Much of this research has been historically funded by the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH), back to grants to Howard Markman that founded our lab in the early 1980s. Beginning in the Fall of 2006, this research is now being funded by a different NIH institute, the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD). I, Elizabeth Allen, and Howard Markman have received another grant from NICHD as of January, 2006, funding a large, random clinical trial of PREP in the U. S. Army.

As part of the work that I and Howard Markman and colleagues do in the area of prevention and marriage education, I have become extensively involved in various federal and state and private sector discussions regarding policy and programs for helping more couples achieve their aspirations for lasting love. For example, since the Spring of 2001, I have been one of two senior advisors to the Oklahoma Marriage Initiative which is an effort that has gained a great deal of national attention as marriage has become more in focus by policy makers in and outside of government circles. I have been very involved in various decisions regarding Oklahoma's service delivery system, key policy decisions, and the formation of the research advisory group (comprised of Christine Johnson, Paul Amato, Norval Glenn, Steve Nock, Robin Dion, Kathy Edin, Pamela Jordan, Ron Haskins, and Howard Markman). As part of this group, I helped design and implement the baseline state-wide survey used in that state, which is now being used in other states as well. Our team is involved in consulting or providing input to many different ongoing efforts by various state and federal entities in the area of marriage and family policy and programs.

Closely related to the public policy interests and the longstanding prevention interests manifested in efforts such as the development of PREP, I, Howard Markman, and other colleagues continue to be extensively involved in development of new approaches to help individuals and couples be successful in relationships. Much of the recent work is focused on specifically meeting the needs of lower income individuals and couples who have not, historically, been the focus of such efforts across the U. S. As of October, 2006, colleagues in our department Martha Wadsworth and Howard Markman received a large grant from the Administration of Children and Families to study marriage and relationship education efforts among those who are economically disadvantaged.

Lastly, my greatest passion in terms of basic scientific understandings is work on research and theory on commitment in personal relationships, which has grown to include research on cohabitation, couple development, sacrifice in romantic relationships, and confidence. This work has grown to lay an important foundation to work in our lab to better understand the longstanding but inadequately explicated risks associated with couples cohabiting prior to marriage. This focus in our lab involves a number of brilliant younger scientists including Galena Kline Rhoades and Sarah Whitton. The work that we are doing has provided a new, empirically compelling explanation of this risk (laid out most clearly in the "Sliding vs. Deciding" paper referenced below) that does not take away from previous explanations associated with selection effects but adds explanation for the role of experience in risk for couple development, especially that which is associated with sliding through major transitions rather than making clear decisions based on solid information. As of October, 2006, we have a major grant from NICHD to develop a large, nationally representative longitudinal sample to study cohabitation and risks of various pathways of couple trajectories of development. As of the Summer of 2007, we are actively recruiting the large sample for the longitudinal study, using phone survey methods.

Representative (and Recent) Publications

Doss, B. D., Rhoades, G. K., Stanley, S. M., & Markman, H. J. (in press). The effect of the transition to parenthood on relationship quality: An eight-year prospective study. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology.

Whitton, S. W., Rhoades, G. K., Stanley, S. M., & Markman, H. J. (in press). Effects of parental divorce on marital commitment and confidence. Journal of Family Psychology.

Beach, S. R. H., Fincham, F. D., Hurt, T. R., McNair, L. M., & Stanley, S. M. (in press). Prayer and marital intervention: A conceptual framework. Journal of Social and Clinical Psychology.

Einhorn, L., Williams, T., Stanley, S. M., Markman, H. J., & Eason, J. (in press). PREP Inside and Out: Marriage Education for Inmates. Family Process.

Rhoades, G. K., Stanley, S. M., & Markman, H. J. (in press). Couples' reasons for cohabitation: Associations with individual well-being and relationship quality. Journal of Family Issues.

Doss, B. D., Rhoades, G. K., Stanley, S. M., & Markman, H. J. (in press). Marital therapy, retreats, and books: The who, what, when and why of relationship help-seeking behaviors. Journal of Marital and Family Therapy.

Allen, E. S., Rhoades, G. K., Stanley, S. M., Markman, H. J., Williams, T., Melton, J., & Clements, M. L. (in press). Premarital Precursors of Marital Infidelity. Family Process.

Markman, H. J., Stanley, S. M., Jenkins, N. H., Petrella, J. N., & Wadsworth, M. E. (in press). Preventive education: Distinctives and directions. Journal of Cognitive Psychotherapy.

Stanley , S. M., Rhoades, G. K., Olmos-Gallo, P. A., & Markman, H. J. (2007). Mechanisms of change in a cognitive behavioral couples prevention program: Does being naughty or nice matter? Prevention Science, 8, 227-239.

Whitton, S. W., Stanley, S. M., & Markman, H. J. (2007). If I help my partner, will it hurt me? Perceptions of sacrifice in romantic relationships. Journal of Social and Clinical Psychology, 26, 64-92.

Stanley, S. M., Whitton, S. W., Low, S. M., Clements, M. L., & Markman, H. J. (2006). Sacrifice as a predictor of marital outcomes. Family Process, 45, 289-303.

Whitton, S. W., Olmos-Gallo, P. A., Stanley, S. M., Prado, L. M., Rhoades, G. K., St. Peters, M., & Markman, H. J. (2007). Depressive symptoms in early marriage: Predictions from relationship confidence and negative marital interaction. Journal of Family Psychology, 21, 297 - 306.

Fincham, F. D., Stanley, S. M., & Beach, S. R. H. (2007). Transformative processes in marriage: An analysis of emerging trends. Journal of Marriage and Family, 69, 275 - 292.

Rhoades, G. K., Petrella, J. N., Stanley, S. M., & Markman, H. J. (2006). Premarital cohabitation, husbands' dedication, and wives' satisfaction with the division of household contribution. Marriage and Family Review, 40(4), 5 - 22.

Stanley, S. M., Rhoades, G. K., & Markman, H. J. (2006). Sliding vs. Deciding: Inertia and the premarital cohabitation effect. Family Relations, 55, 499 - 509.

Stanley, S. M., Whitton, S. W., Low, S. M., Clements, M. L., & Markman, H. J. (2006). Sacrifice as a predictor of marital outcomes. Family Process, 45, 289-303.

Stanley, S. M., Amato, P. R., Johnson, C. A., & Markman, H. J. (2006). Premarital education, marital quality, and marital stability: Findings from a large, random, household survey. Journal of Family Psychology, 20, 117-126.

Kline, G. H., Stanley, S. M., Markman, H. J., Olmos-Gallo, P. A., St. Peters, M., Whitton, S. W., Prado, L. (2004). Timing is everything: Pre-engagement cohabitation and increased risk for poor marital outcomes. Journal of Family Psychology, 18, 311-318.

Stanley, S. M., Allen, E. S., Markman, H. J., Saiz, C. C., Bloomstrom, G., Thomas, R., Schumm, W. R., & Baily, A. E. (2005). Dissemination and evaluation of marriage education in the Army. Family Process, 44, 187-201.

Laurenceau, J. P., Stanley, S. M., Olmos-Gallo, A., Baucom, B., & Markman, H. J. (2004). Community-based prevention of marital dysfunction: Multilevel modeling of a randomized effectiveness study. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 72, 933-943.

Clements, M.L., Stanley, S.M., & Markman, H.J. (2004). Before they said "I Do": Discriminating among marital outcomes over 13 years based on premarital data. Journal of Marriage and the Family, 66, 613-626.

Stanley, S.M., Whitton, S. W., & Markman, H. J. (2004). Maybe I do: Interpersonal commitment and premarital or nonmarital cohabitation. Journal of Family Issues, 25, 496-519.

Stanley, S.M., Markman, H.J., & Whitton, S. (2002). Communication, Conflict, and Commitment: Insights On The Foundations of Relationship Success from a National Survey. Family Process, 41(4), 659-675.

Johnson, C. A., Stanley, S. M., Glenn, N. D., Amato, P. A., Nock, S. L., Markman, H. J., & Dion, M. R. (2002). Marriage in Oklahoma: 2001 baseline statewide survey on marriage and divorce (S02096 OKDHS). Oklahoma City, OK: Oklahoma Department of Human Services.

Stanley, S.M. (2001). Making the Case for Premarital Education. Family Relations, 50, 272-280.

Stanley, S.M., Markman, H.J., Prado, L.M., Olmos-Gallo, P.A., Tonelli, L., St. Peters, M., Leber, B.D., Bobulinski, M., Cordova, A., & Whitton, S. (2001). Community Based Premarital Prevention: Clergy and Lay Leaders on the Front Lines. Family Relations,50, 67-76.

Stanley, S. M., Bradbury, T.N., & Markman, H.J. (2000). Structural flaws in the bridge from basic research on marriage to interventions for couples: Illustrations from Gottman, Coan, Carrere, and Swanson (1998). Journal of Marriage and the Family, 62(1), 256-264.

Forthofer, M.S., Markman, H.J., Cox, M., Stanley, S., & Kessler, R.C. (1996). Associations between marital distress and work loss in a national sample. Journal of Marriage and Family, 58, 597-605.

Stanley, S.M., Markman, H.J., St. Peters, M., & Leber, D. (1995). Strengthening Marriages and Preventing Divorce: New Directions in Prevention Research. Family Relations, 44, 392-401.

Markman, H.J., Renick, M.J., Floyd, F.J., Stanley, S.M., & Clements, M. (1993). Preventing marital distress through communication and conflict management training: A 4- and 5-year follow-up. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 61, 70-77.

Stanley, S.M., & Markman, H.J. (1992). Assessing Commitment in Personal Relationships. Journal of Marriage and The Family, 54, 595-608.

Scott Stanley
Ph.D. 1986,
University of Denver

Research Professor, Clinical Child
office: Frontier Hall,
Rm. 212
phone: 303.692.8932
e-mail: scott@stanleyemail.com

Co-Director
Center for Marital and Family Studies