Elisha Oluwasegun Alabi, Kudirat B. Sanni
The study investigated the “Embracing Intimacy: The Influence of Kissing and Hugging on Marital Satisfaction of Couples in the Baptist church in Abia State, Nigeria”. The study was guided by two research questions and two hypotheses. A quantitative descriptive survey design was used. The target population for the study consisted of all male and female married couples (2,822) who are members of the Baptist church in Abia State, Nigeria, as of the time of this study in 2025. A sample size of 847 couples (Male and Female) was determined using Krejcie and Morgan’s (1970) Table for sample size determination. The sample was selected using a simple random sampling technique. The instrument for data collection was a structured questionnaire tagged: “Marital Sexual Activities and Marital Satisfaction Questionnaire” (MSAMSQ). Section A of the instrument comprised independent variables such as Demographic Information; Section B was Marital Sexual Activities, while Section C included the dependent variable, which is Marital Satisfaction. The instrument was measured using a 4-point scale (Very High Interest (VHI), High Interest (HI), Low Interest (LI) and Very Low Interest (VLI)). The instrument was face validated by three experts, one from the Department of Psychological Foundations of Education, and two from the Department of Guidance and Counselling, University of Uyo, Uyo. The collated data were analysed using Simple Linear Regression to answer the research questions and were used to test the hypotheses at a .05 level of significance. The findings revealed that there was a statistically significant influence of kissing and hugging on the marital satisfaction of couples in the Baptist church in Abia State. It was recommended among others, that couples should prioritise and openly communicate the importance of kissing to strengthen their marital satisfaction.