The Effect of Polygyny on the Quality of Life of Senior Wives in Kuwait

This study concentrates on the quality of life of women in polygynus marriages, which is considered as an accepted form of marriage and is legally practiced in many countries. The study aims at finding out the effect of polygyny on senior/first wives in four domains: physical health, psychological health, social relationships, and environment. The research method used a convenient sample of 200 Senior Wives who were recruited to answer the Arabic version of the Quality of life questionnaire (WHOQOL-Bref) (Abdel-khalek, 2008). The results of the study revealed that participants showed moderately high score on their perception of their quality of life (Mean= 58.8, SD= 25.). Mean scores of the four domains ranged between M=57.4, SD=17.9 and M= 63.6, SD=28.5. The results also showed significant differences between groups in terms of age, cultural background, religious faith, and level of income