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EsmzamaniAghmiouni S, Rasouli R, Taheri A. Modeling the relationship between relational mindfulness and couple intimacy with the mediation of empathy. Journal title 2025; 18 (4)
URL: http://rph.khu.ac.ir/article-1-4599-en.html

Given the central role of the family in promoting individual and societal mental health, the quality of marital relationships is considered a key factor in enhancing psychological well-being both at the personal and communal levels. Accordingly, identifying the factors that improve the quality and intimacy of couple relationships is of significant importance. The present study aimed to investigate the mediating role of empathy in the relationship between relational mindfulness and couple intimacy. This descriptive-correlational study was conducted among all married students at the University of Tehran during the 2022–2023 academic year. A sample of 300 married students (both male and female) was selected using a convenience sampling method. Data were collected through the Couple Intimacy Questionnaire (Wendenbroeck & Wertman, 1995), the Empathy Scale (Jolliffe & Farrington, 2006), and the Relational Mindfulness Scale (Kimmes et al., 2018). Data were analyzed using SPSS-26 and AMOS-24 through structural equation modeling (SEM). The results revealed significant positive relationships between relational mindfulness and empathy (β = 0.27, p < 0.001), empathy and couple intimacy (β = 0.36, p < 0.001), and relational mindfulness and couple intimacy (β = 0.17, p = 0.002). Comparison of the direct and full models indicated that empathy plays a partial mediating role in the relationship between relational mindfulness and couple intimacy. These findings underscore the importance of fostering relational mindfulness and empathy as pathways to enhance intimacy in romantic relationships.