Reflection: Gottman’s Prediction on Marriage

Reflection: Gottman’s Prediction on Marriage
John Gottman makes a rather bold proclamation on his prediction on the probability of divorce by observing a couple for few minutes, with a magnificent 91 percent success rate. The sample size used by Gottman and the group in their research, 700 married families, is enough to make plausible observations in such a complex subject area as marriage. Also, the research considers the different circumstances that may vary from one couple to the other as variables of the research. In addition, Gottman’s approach to marriage is from a proactive standpoint, focusing on what makes marriages succeed rather than what makes them fail. From his observation of Dara and Oliver, Gottman can deduce their marriage failure not from the mere fact that they were arguing but rather the way they argue, implying that his research pays attention to the details that clue together marriages. As much as the 15 minutes obser...