Marriage Sabotaged Marriage 3 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: Which pattern describes a spouse who acts loving in public but is cold and dismissive at home?
- Secure attachment
- Jekyll-and-Hyde behavior (Correct answer)
- Introversion
- Love bombing
Correct answer: Jekyll-and-Hyde behavior
Jekyll-and-Hyde behavior involves performing a warm persona for outsiders while reserving emotional distance or cruelty for the partner at home.
Question 2: In the context of a sabotaged marriage, what is 'stonewalling'?
- Refusing to move out of the family home
- Completely shutting down and refusing to engage during conflict (Correct answer)
- Building emotional walls through therapy
- Setting firm personal boundaries
Correct answer: Completely shutting down and refusing to engage during conflict
Stonewalling is when one partner withdraws entirely from communication, leaving conflicts unresolved and the other partner feeling dismissed.
Question 3: A partner routinely dismisses the other's feelings by saying 'you're too sensitive.' This is an example of:
- Empathy
- Invalidation (Correct answer)
- Tough love
- Rational disagreement
Correct answer: Invalidation
Dismissing a partner's emotional responses as overreactions is a form of emotional invalidation that erodes trust and connection.
Question 4: Which financial behavior can constitute marriage sabotage?
- Having a separate savings account
- Secretly accumulating debt or hiding assets from a spouse (Correct answer)
- Contributing unequal amounts to joint expenses
- Disagreeing on investment strategies
Correct answer: Secretly accumulating debt or hiding assets from a spouse
Financial deception — hiding debt, secret spending, or concealing assets — is a serious betrayal that destabilizes marital trust and security.
Question 5: What is the 'silent treatment' most likely to communicate to the receiving partner?
- A need for space to process emotions
- Punishment and emotional withdrawal designed to cause distress (Correct answer)
- Agreement with the partner's position
- Cultural norms about conflict avoidance
Correct answer: Punishment and emotional withdrawal designed to cause distress
When used manipulatively, the silent treatment is a punishment tactic that communicates rejection and creates anxiety in the recipient.
Question 6: A spouse frequently makes self-deprecating jokes that subtly blame their partner. This tactic is best described as:
- Healthy humor
- Passive-aggressive communication (Correct answer)
- Sarcasm without ill intent
- Low self-esteem expression
Correct answer: Passive-aggressive communication
Disguising blame or criticism as self-deprecating humor allows the person to make cutting remarks while avoiding direct accountability.
Question 7: Which response to a partner's success most clearly signals marriage sabotage?
- Celebrating with a small gesture
- Immediately minimizing the achievement or shifting attention to yourself (Correct answer)
- Asking questions about their work
- Expressing pride to shared friends
Correct answer: Immediately minimizing the achievement or shifting attention to yourself
A partner who cannot celebrate the other's success often feels threatened by it, and minimizing or redirecting reflects deep resentment or insecurity.
Marriage Sabotaged Marriage 3
Which pattern describes a spouse who acts loving in public but is cold and dismissive at home?