Benevolent Prayer: Prayer for Spouse/Partner

How is benevolent prayer for spouse/partner measured via questionnaires in research studies?

• Partner Focused Prayer Measure
  • I pray for the well being of my romantic partner.
  • I pray that good things will happen for my partner.
  • I ask God to watch over my partner.
  • I pray for my partner to reach his/her goals.
    • Questions answered on a 5-point scale ranging from "Never" to "Very Frequently" - Coefficient alpha = .96.
      • Source: Fincham, F. D., Lambert, N. M., & Beach, S. R. H. (2010). Faith and unfaithfulness: Can praying for your partner reduce infidelity? Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 99, 649-659).

A way to think about the prayer findings is in terms of protective and risk factors (top two are protective and bottom 2 are risk factors).

BOTTOM LINE: Greater benevolent prayer for a partner has been associated with...

• Greater relationship satisfaction
  • Self-report and Experimental
• Greater commitment
  • Observed and Experimental
• Greater forgiveness of partner
  • Self-report, Partner Report, Observed, and Experimental
• Decreased use of alcohol
  • Self-report
• Decreased sexual infidelity, in thought or action, over time
  • Self-report and Experimental
• More cooperative behavior towards partner
  • Observed and Experimental
    

For more information on prayer for partners visit Frank Fincham's website