Article Analysis: Sciences Assignment
Taylor Wright
Liberty University
Research 201-D
Professor Adarkwa
November 11 , 2024
th
Abstract
In the study titled “The role of praying for the spouse and the sanctification of marriage in
reducing infidelity” that was published in Mental Health, Religion & Culture and written by
Neda Rayesh and Seyed Kalantar, the role of sanctification of marriage and praying for your
spouse's role on infidelity within a marriage. The study was conducted on 222 married
individuals (169 women and 53 men) within the Muslim community in Iran who then self-
reported through a provided questionnaire. Through this study, it was founded that there is a
strong association between marriage sanctification, prayer, and infidelity. Meaning, that couples
who view their matrimony as sacred and holy and who continuously pray over their significant
other were found to have a lesser likelihood of an affair within their marriage. This study also
brings to light the vitality of religion and of having God as the foundation within a marriage.
Research Purpose and Overview
The purpose of the study was to explore how the sanctification of marriage between a man and a
woman as well as prayers over their spouses influences the chance of infidelity within the
marriage. In the Muslim religion marriage is viewed as a sacred commitment made both to your
partner and to God, who you are to honor throughout your life and one of the ways to do so is to
be praying over your spouse. The study questions that they aimed to identify in the article were
“Is there a significant relationship between sanctification of marriage and infidelity?” as well as
“Is there a significant relationship between prayer for the spouse and infidelity?”. The theories
that informed these theories include the sanctification of marriage, God’s blessings upon a
marriage, and the holiness of matrimony.
Methods and Research
Qualitative research which is defined by Kristen Hark in her book titled “Research Across the
Disciplines” is considered to require researchers to use inductive reasoning as well as to assess
cultural norms and how that may influence the results of the study. Data collection tools such as
the manifestation of god in marriage scaler, the partner focused prayer measure, and the infidelity
scale were all tool used to collect their data. From their conducted study they were able to create
correlation and regression analysis to test their study questions that were stated above. The casual
comparative design, as described Hark looks for relationships between variables after an event
has occurred. In the case of this study the variables include religion and the “event” in question is
infidelity within a marriage. In addition, the casual comparative research is utilized to find cause
and affect relationships between different groups (such as religious married couples and non
believers). The data collection method that was utilized within this study was a self-reported
questionnaire. The researchers of this case study used correlation analysis and regression
analysis. Correlation analysis was used to find the association between religious practices and
infidelity within a marriage. Regression analysis was executed by forecasting sanctification of
marriage and how praying for their spouses could lead to predictions on marriage infidelity.
Findings, Discussion, and Future Research
The main research findings of this study concluded that the holiness of marriage and prayers for
a spouse had a negative correlation with infidelity within the marriage. The findings of these
studies show the benefit of having religion as the firm and centered foundation of your
relationship, which decreases the likelihood of infidelity within the relationship. Limitations to
the study include the sample size, cultural/religious context, and self-reported data from
participants. The sample size of this study was relatively small at two hundred and twenty-two
individuals with the majority (one hundred and sixty-nine) being women and the minority (fifty-
three) being men. This study was also only applied to Muslims living in Iran, there is no
diversity in religion or geographical locations that provide a better insight on different cultures
and religions around the world. The data itself was self-reported which can lead to bias or
information being withheld from sharing due to a reluctance to share sensitive information, such
as marriage infidelity. For future research the author of this study has suggested exploring other
dynamics within the relationship that are unrelated to religion, expanding the demographic of the
people being surveyed, a more balanced split between men and women, and using mixed method
research within the study. The mixed method research approach would allow for both qualitative
and quantitative data to be collected, allow for a larger sampling size, show the data be compared
to different perspectives, and would be more well suited got showing culture relevance in this
study (Hark p. 126-128).
References:
Harks, K. (2019). Research across the disciplines: An introduction. Kendall Hunt Publishing
Company.
Rayesh, N., & Kalantar, S. (2018). The role of praying for the spouse and the sanctification of
marriage in reducing infidelity Mental Health, Religion & Culture. .
