The Role of Alexithymia and Sexual Self-esteem in the Prediction of Marital Stress and Adjustment in Infertile Women

Considering the negative impact of infertility on the level of adjustment and stress in women, the present study aimed to examine the role of sexual self-esteem and alexithymia in predicting marital stress and adjustment of infertile women.

This research was a cross-sectional study. The study population consisted of all infertile women in Shiraz City, Iran (N=70000). A total of 400 women were selected through a non-random and purposeful sampling method, but the final sample consisted of 380 subjects. The study tools were a short form of sexual self-esteem scale for women, Locke-Wallace marital adjustment questionnaire, Stockholm-Tehran marital stress scale, and Toronto alexithymia scale. The obtained data were analyzed by the Pearson correlation and multivariate regression in the SPSS V. 26.

The results showed a significant negative relationship between sexual self-esteem and marital stress as well as alexithymia and marital adjustment (P<0.01). Besides, the positive relationships between sexual self-esteem and marital adjustment and alexithymia and marital stress were significant (P<0.01). The results of multiple regression analysis demonstrated that alexithymia and sexual self-esteem could significantly predict marital stress and marital adjustment with the standard coefficient of 0.44 and 0.22, respectively.

Alexithymia and sexual self-esteem play essential roles in predicting adjustment and stress levels of infertile women, respectively. Accordingly, difficulty in emotional awareness at first, and then the low level of self-esteem in sexual function can decrease adjustment and increase stress in marital relationships.