Cmolik Scholar Explores How Partners Navigate Difficult Conversations

Maya Beninteso is pursuing a Master of Arts in Clinical Psychology at Simon Fraser University, where she hopes to better understand what helps couples maintain healthy relationships through conflict and change.

Beninteso’s interest in psychology began with the textbooks her mother brought home during nursing training. In high school, witnessing the stigma surrounding mental health crises and self-injury led her to create a peer support group and a student-led mental health council. Later, volunteering in university research labs sparked a passion for the research side of clinical psychology.

Today, Beninteso is interested in what people hope to achieve when they raise difficult subjects with a partner. Her proposed research will examine how personal and relationship-focused goals during those conversations may relate to relationship and sexual satisfaction across different relationship structures.

“Ultimately, romantic relationships are one of the most robust predictors of life satisfaction and mortality—they are vital. In recognition of this empirical reality, I hope to examine and disseminate the mechanisms through which healthy romantic relationships may be maintained—especially when couples experience conflict or periods of transition.”

Beninteso hopes to complete a doctorate and become both a clinical psychologist and a professor, combining research with assessment and therapy. She is especially interested in helping couples navigate conflict and major transitions, such as moving in together or becoming parents.

“This graduate scholarship means that I have finished a chapter, one that was riddled with re-writing my story, and started a new one,” Beninteso said. “A new story in which I am helping others re-write theirs.”

About The Cmolik Foundation

Founded in 2008, The Cmolik Foundation creates opportunities for young people in British Columbia who have experienced adversity. Believing in the power of education to transform lives, the Foundation supports youth through scholarships, mentorship, field trips and summer camps. It awards $60,000 scholarships to students pursuing post-secondary education and $30,000 graduate scholarships to outstanding alumni.

Read more: https://thecmolikfoundation.com/