Background and Purpose

The quality of relationships between couples as the core of the family is essential in the functioning of the family. The amount of love, commitment and intimate and satisfying relationship between these two essential members of the family will have a profound effect on the sense of peace and comfort of each family member, especially children (Jafari Sahraroodi, 2020). Parents' relationships with each other determine children's behavior (Shahni Yeylagh, et al. 2014). The effect of the quality of marriage and two-person relationships between spouses in the family on physical and mental health, success and psychosocial adjustment of children in different individual and social dimensions has been confirmed in various studies (Mollazadeh, et al. 2001).

Researches show that the quality of parent-child relationship and its dimensions (cohesion, agreement, and adjustment) play a very important role in causing various types of psychological and behavioral disorders and general and mental health in children (Robinson & Neece, 2015; Bathaee, 2016; Wahyuningsih, et al., 2020). All of these studies indicate that the quality of parent-child relationships or their dimensions (satisfaction, agreement, or adjustment and cohesion) can predict the psychological state of children.

Due to the conditions in the society, including the social and economic problems resulting from industrialization and increasing expectations and consumerism in individuals, the problems, incompatibilities and dissatisfaction of couples have increased and this factor as a source of stress in the family has made children more complex. Since, children are in the developmental stage, any anxiety and worry in them can hinder their growth and flourishing and stop their abilities and talents, but on the contrary, vitality and spiritual expansion can create a positive personality in the child and provide the fertility of wisdom and thought in them (Aflakifard & Bazm, 2018). Therefore, it seems very necessary to pay attention to the happiness of children in this condition. This issue is also very important for the society; because children are the next generation of society and the builder of it; Society needs technology and science production for progress and growth, and it depends on the existence of creative and thoughtful people. Creativity depends on vitality and the feeling of joy and happiness; because it is associated with creativity, self-efficacy, purposefulness, high social commitment, extraversion, and self-esteem (Moradi, Jafari, and Abedi, 2005). Considering the importance of childhood and the happiness and vitality for children as the next generation of society and the evidence on the role of quality of parental relationships on children's psychological status, as little scientific works have been done on children's happiness. So, it is necessary to study the role of parental marital quality and children's happiness. Therefore, in this study, the general research question was whether the quality of parental marital relationship has a significant relationship with the happiness of children aged 7 to 12 years?

The hypothesis

There is a significant relationship between parental cohesion and children's happiness.

There is a significant relationship between parental agreement with each other and children's happiness.

There is a significant relationship between parents' satisfaction with each other and children's happiness. 

Methods

The method of the present study was descriptive-correlational. The statistical population of the study was the parents of children aged 7 to 12 years in Ardabil. The sample size of this study consisted of 154 parents of children aged 7 to 12 years living in Ardabil who were selected by simple random sampling. The instruments used in this study were the Marital Relationship Quality Questionnaire, prepared by Basby et al. (1995) and the Oxford Happiness Questionnaire provided by Argyle and Lou (1989). Both questionnaires are standard, and have been evaluated both in Iran and abroad and have high reliability and validity. After collecting the questionnaires, the data were analyzed using Pearson analysis and regression tests.

Results

The results show that the main hypothesis of the research is confirmed, which means that the dimensions of satisfaction and cohesion of the quality of marital relationships have a significant relationship with children's happiness (p <0.01). The agreement did not play a significant role in predicting children's happiness and therefore did not enter the regression equation. The sub-hypotheses of the study were also confirmed in the sense that the dimensions of the quality of parents' marital relationships, i.e. cohesion, agreement and marital satisfaction, each have a significant and positive relationship with all dimensions of children's happiness and total happiness score (p <0.01). 

Conclusion

The quality of parental marital relationships and its dimensions, including cohesion, agreement and satisfaction of couples towards each other, are able to predict children's happiness. In fact, it can be said that a good relationship between parents, a sense of satisfaction and understanding and compatibility, on the one hand makes parents more relaxed to better play their parental role, which can lead to a sense of happiness in the child and on the other hand a safe family environment. Disagreements and conflicts between parents provide an opportunity for the child to develop talents and abilities, and thus a healthy growth, mental health, and happiness. Marital satisfaction is one of the most practical tools in assessing the quality of parents' marital relationships, which covers all aspects of their personal and social life. Marital satisfaction leads couples to solve interpersonal problems in the best possible way with a correct approach to life issues. As a result, more agreement prevails between them and a sense of commitment and cohesion is created. As a result, a completely safe emotional and psychological atmosphere is created for the family, especially the child, and children will develop their talents and abilities in such an atmosphere. And the ground for creating positive emotions and happiness will be provided.

Therefore, one of the factors that can play a positive role in children's happiness is the quality of marital relations between parents, which should be considered more.

Ethical Considerations

Compliance with ethical guidelines 

Author contributions: Afsoon Mollazadeh Nooran is the corresponding author, Mehrangiz Shoaa Kazemi is the second author and Mohsen Badreh is the third one.

Conflict of interest: This research does not directly or indirectly conflict with other interests. The authors of the article state that in connection with the publication of the presented article, they have completely followed the publishing ethics, including plagiarism, misconduct, data falsification, or duplication and there is no commercial interest in this regard. The authors did not receive any payment for their work. The corresponding author signs and approves the conflict of interest form on behalf of other authors and declares the originality of its content. The author also states that this work has not been previously published elsewhere and has not been submitted to another publication at the same time. Also, all rights to use the content, tables, images, etc. have been assigned to the publisher.

Acknowledgments: The present article is taken from the master's thesis of the corresponding author of women's studies. Therefore, we would like to thank the supervisor, Dr. Mehrangiz Shoaa Kazemi, and the advisor, Dr. Mohsen Badreh, and all those who contributed to this research.