Table 8 - uploaded by Yuthika U. Girme
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Unstandardized Coefficients Testing the Longitudinal Associations between Shared Relationship Activity Outcomes and
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One-hundred and ninety-six individuals (Study 1) and 83 couples (Study 2) reported on their shared relationship activities—activities that individuals engage in with their partner to facilitate closeness in their romantic relationships. Couples also reported on the quality of their shared activities and relationships 3 months later (Study 2). Resul...
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Context 1
... resulting coefficients are displayed in Table 8, which provide good evidence that engaging in shared relationship activities play an important role in relationship maintenance. ...
Context 2
... before, we also wanted to show that the positive relationship sustaining effects of shared relationship activities occurred above and beyond accommodation. Shown in parentheses in Table 8, when controlling for accommodation the longitudinal associations between shared relationship activity outcomes and later relationship quality remained significant or marginally significant (ps < .07). In contrast, levels of accommodation was not independently associated with relationship quality across these analyses (bs = .58 ...
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... Given its importance, several interventions have been developed to enhance marital quality, particularly focusing on both skills and attitudes that contribute to healthy relationships. These interventions include communication skills training [6,7], conflict resolution strategies [8], the Prevention and Relationship Enhancement Program (PREP), [7,9], emotional support enhancement [10], and activities designed to increase intimacy and shared enjoyment [11]. Structured programs such as the PREP and the Couple Communication Program have been widely used to help couples build stronger relationships through guided practice in these areas [6,7,11]. ...
... These interventions include communication skills training [6,7], conflict resolution strategies [8], the Prevention and Relationship Enhancement Program (PREP), [7,9], emotional support enhancement [10], and activities designed to increase intimacy and shared enjoyment [11]. Structured programs such as the PREP and the Couple Communication Program have been widely used to help couples build stronger relationships through guided practice in these areas [6,7,11]. ...
Marital quality is influenced by numerous factors, with previous research highlighting the importance of positive attitudes and supportive practices in fostering a healthy relationship environment. However, there is a need for empirical studies that specifically examine how skills and attitudes-based practices impact marital quality. This pilot study aims to fill this gap by investigating the influence of couple skills and attitudes-based practices on marital quality, providing insights that could inform therapeutic approaches and interventions for couples seeking to improve their marital satisfaction.
This randomized controlled trial involved 45 married couples, aged 25–45, divided into an intervention group (23 couples) and a control group (22 couples). The intervention consisted of 8 weekly workshops designed to foster key aspects of marital quality, such as communication, expectations, and commitment. Participants in both groups were assessed using the Relationship Belief Inventory (RBI), the Marriage Expectation Scale (MES), and the Marital Commitment Questionnaire (MCQ) before and after the intervention.
The significant main effects of time and group, as well as the time by group interaction effects for the RBI, MES, MCQ scores indicate that the intervention effectively improve dysfunctional beliefs about relationships, marital commitment, and marital expectations. The results revealed significant improvements in all three areas for the intervention group compared to the control group, highlighting the program's efficacy.
The findings suggest that targeted skills and attitudes-based practices can effectively enhance marital quality among midlife couples. By addressing both attitudes and practical skills, particularly in communication and conflict resolution, the program equips couples with essential tools to foster healthier and more resilient relationships. Future studies should examine the long-term effects of such interventions and consider larger samples for sub-Group analyses.
The Pan African Clinical Trials Registry PACTR202408536250978. Retrospectively Registered on 20 August 2024.
... For example, meta-analytic research provides evidence that well-being increases leading up to marriage but returns to pre-marital levels shortly following marriage and subsequently maintains pre-marital levels over time (see Figure 1, Panel A; Luhmann et al., 2012). People may experience increases in well-being leading up to marriage because this is considered a "honeymoon" phase of relationships characterized by fewer relationship conflicts (Bradbury, 1998), more novel activities as a couple (Girme et al., 2014), and opportunities for self-expansion (Aron et al., 2002). The period prior to marriage may reflect a time in which people have many positive relationship experiences. ...
... For example, early on in relationships people tend to hide their flaws (Birditt et al., 2012) and see the best in their partner ("positive illusions"; Barelds & Dijkstra, 2011), which may lead to fewer conflicts and arguments that undermine relationship satisfaction (Finkel et al., 2013;Gottman et al., 1998). Moreover, prior to marriage, people may have more opportunities for self-expansion as they engage in new experiences and get to know each other (Aron et al., 2002;Girme et al., 2014). Thus, the period leading up to marriage may be a time in which people have more satisfying relationships. ...
The well-being literature reveals that individuals experience increases in well-being leading up to marriage, followed by a return to pre-marriage levels shortly after marriage. In contrast, the relationship/marriage literature suggests that relationship satisfaction may steadily decline across time. However, it is unclear at what point relationship satisfaction may begin to decline. In the current study, we drew data from a nationally representative sample of diverse-aged adults to examine changes in well-being and relationship satisfaction prior to marriage, shortly after marriage, and post marriage. Data were utilized from 14-years of the New Zealand Attitudes and Values Study ( N = 1,520). Participants received annual surveys and reported their well-being (life satisfaction, subjective well-being, belonging) and relationship satisfaction. We examined whether getting married was associated with average within-person changes in well-being and relationship satisfaction across the years before marriage, shortly after marriage, and across the years following marriage. Event-aligned piecewise latent growth models found similar patterns of change across marriage for well-being (life satisfaction, subjective well-being) and relationship satisfaction. On average, well-being and relationship satisfaction increased leading up to marriage, dropped significantly shortly after marriage, and continued to decline following marriage. By integrating well-being and relationship/marriage literatures, these findings provide novel insights that for continuously partnered individuals, the course of well-being and relationship satisfaction change in similar ways leading up to marriage, shortly after marriage, and years following marriage.
... Two potential pathways that may explain the connection between mindfulness and relationship quality are through engagement in self-care and shared relationship activities. Self-care refers to the engagement in practices or activities that promote one's own health and well-being (Newsome et al., 2012;Richards et al., 2010;Shapiro et al., 2007), while shared relationship activities refer to the dyadic engagement in shared activities that promote positive interaction and intimacy (Girme et al., 2014). Prior studies indicate that mindfulness can enhance the ability to identify one's own needs (Bice et al., 2014;Brown & Ryan, 2003;Karremans et al., 2017), as well as increase empathic concern for another person, feelings of interconnectedness with other people and positive affect (Barnes et al., 2007;Brown & Ryan, 2003;Wachs & Cordova, 2007). ...
... Engagement in shared relationship activities refers to the participation in shared activities with a romantic partner that facilitate relationship closeness (e.g. talking with each other about their day, stimulating an exchange of ideas or engaging in outside interests together; Girme et al., 2014). Mindfulness-based practices are often experienced as self-expanding, which enhances trust, love for other people and connection with a greater whole (Carson et al., 2004(Carson et al., , 2007. ...
... Couples' engagement in successful and satisfying shared activities has been shown to positively contribute to the maintenance of their relationships and significantly promote relationship closeness and satisfaction (Girme et al., 2014). Current research also indicates that the more time couples engage in shared relationship activities, the greater they report relationship satisfaction (Harasymchuk et al., 2021;Muise et al., 2019). ...
Although studies have examined the association between individuals' mindfulness and romantic relationship quality, additional empirical research is necessary to specifically comprehend the potential factors influencing the association between mindfulness and couple quality. The purpose of the present study was to inves-tigate the association between mindfulness and couplequality and the mediating roles of self-care and engage-ment in shared relationship activities among 1,331 par-ticipants in a southeastern region of the United States. The authors of this study conducted a multiple mediation analysis using longitudinal data to investigate the mediating effects of caring for self and engagement in shared relationship activities. The research findings in this study indicated that an individual's mindfulness had a significant direct association with couple quality in a romantic relationship. In addition, participants' couple quality was significantly mediated by self-care and engagement in shared relationship activities with a romantic partner. Implications for educators, researchers, and practitioners are discussed.
... High-quality relationships are characterized by relatively more positive relationship behaviors that make the partner feel understood, appreciated, and supported (e.g., Gable & Reis, 2010;Reis et al., 2004) and relatively fewer relationship behaviors that threaten, undermine, or hurt the partner (e.g., Goodboy & Myers, 2010). Examples of positive relationship behaviors include self-disclosure (Sprecher & Hendrick, 2004), arranging date nights (Girme et al., 2014), completing household chores (Newkirk et al., 2017), and engaging in self-expanding activities with the partner (Muise et al., 2019). Examples of negative behaviors include blame, rejection (Rogge & Bradbury, 1999), criticism, or holding the partner in poor regard (Murray et al., 2003). ...
What role do financial worries play in close relationship functioning? In this research, we examine how financial worry – negative thoughts and feelings about finances – is associated with perceived relationship behaviors. Participants recalled how their partner acted during a recent disagreement (Study 1, N = 97 couples) or recalled the frequency of positive and negative behaviors enacted by their partner during the previous week (Study 2, N = 99 couples). Feeling more worried about finances was associated with recalling less supportive behavior from one’s partner at the disagreement (Study 1) and with perceiving more negative behaviors from one’s partner in the last week (Study 2). Truth and Bias Model analyses suggest that part of this link may be attributed to biased perceptions, as the link between financial worry and perceiving more negative behaviors persisted even after controlling for participants’ own reported behaviors (i.e., accounting for similarity) and for their partner’s own reported behaviors (i.e., accounting for accurate perceptions). In sum, financial worry is linked to how partners notice and interpret a loved one’s actions within their relationship.
... Recreational intimacy is defined as when romantic partners share hobbies and leisure activities. Recreational intimacy is associated with relationship satisfaction as well (Dobson & Ogolsky, 2022;Girme et al., 2014;Patrick et al., 2007). Intimacy in general is associated with positive relationship outcomes, such as marital satisfaction (Greeff & Hildegarde, 2001) and higher levels of sexual desire (van Lankveld et al., 2018). ...
Sexual communication can be challenging to initiate. Nevertheless, people with a responsive romantic partner may feel more comfortable with sexual communication. Thus, we examined whether there is an association between partner responsiveness and greater sexual communication, and whether greater sexual communication may potentially mediate associations between responsiveness and positive relationship outcomes (i.e., intimacy types, sexual satisfaction, and relationship satisfaction). We recruited participants from Amazon Mechanical Turk (N = 119) and a sample of undergraduate students (N = 89) to complete online measures. As hypothesized, partner responsiveness was associated with greater sexual communication. Results from structural equation modeling showed that sexual communication mediated associations between responsiveness and intimacy types, and the association between responsiveness and sexual satisfaction in both samples. Interestingly, sexual communication only mediated the association between responsiveness and relationship satisfaction in the sample of undergraduate students. Other notable differences between the samples are discussed, such as differences in age, relationship length, and sexual satisfaction. These results show the importance of sexual communication for romantic relationships, and that even non-sexual partner characteristics may impact a sexual relationship.
... This is consistent with research among heterosexual couples showing that relationship-promoting behaviors can come at a personal cost [55], yet suggests that in this context, the moderating effect of dyadic coping may depend greatly on who in the relationship is experiencing stressors and whose HIV transmission risk behaviors are being examined. These results further underscore a high reliance on dyadic coping among partnered MSM, and suggests that future research could determine how, for whom, and in what situations [56] dyadic coping is likely to be most beneficial. ...
Minority stressors have been linked to HIV risk behaviors among gay, bisexual, queer, and other men who have sex with men (MSM). Committed partnerships are a key context for new HIV infections and coping with minority stress among MSM, but very little work has tested the minority stress-HIV risk link among male couples, and little is known about how processes within one’s relationship may exacerbate or buffer this association. The present study examined links between minority stress (i.e., internalized stigma, microaggressions) and HIV transmission risk behaviors (i.e., condomless anal sex with outside partners, breaks in relationship agreements) among male couples, as well as relationship-based moderators (i.e., social support, dyadic coping) of these associations. An analytic sample of male couples from a large cohort study (analytic N = 410 individuals, 205 dyads) completed self-report measures of minority stress, relationship-based moderators, and HIV transmission risk behaviors which were submitted to moderated actor-partner interdependence models (APIMs). In many cases, coping with stress with one’s partner buffered the minority stress-HIV transmission link risk. However, findings also suggested situations in which partners may overburden one another with coping, thus exacerbating HIV-related risk behaviors.
... One of the most salient relationship maintenance strategies to promote commitment involves sharing leisure time and activities. In this context, music is often cited in inventories of maintenance strategies (e.g., Girme et al., 2013). In a study by Harwood and Wallace (2021), engaging in dyadic musical activities (e.g., sharing music, listening together, singing), was associated with higher commitment, mediated by interpersonal coordination and self-disclosure, even when controlling for other shared dyadic activities (Harwood and Wallace, 2021). ...
In this theoretical review, we examine how the roles of music in mate choice and social bonding are expressed in romantic relationships. Darwin's Descent of Man originally proposed the idea that musicality might have evolved as a sexually selected trait. This proposition, coupled with the portrayal of popular musicians as sex symbols and the prevalence of love-themed lyrics in music, suggests a possible link between music and attraction. However, recent scientific exploration of the evolutionary functions of music has predominantly focused on theories of social bonding and group signaling, with limited research addressing the sexual selection hypothesis. We identify two distinct types of music-making for these different functions: music for attraction, which would be virtuosic in nature to display physical and cognitive fitness to potential mates; and music for connection, which would facilitate synchrony between partners and likely engage the same reward mechanisms seen in the general synchrony-bonding effect, enhancing perceived interpersonal intimacy as a facet of love. Linking these two musical functions to social psychological theories of relationship development and the components of love, we present a model that outlines the potential roles of music in romantic relationships, from initial attraction to ongoing relationship maintenance. In addition to synthesizing the existing literature, our model serves as a roadmap for empirical research aimed at rigorously investigating the possible functions of music for romantic relationships.
... To our knowledge, our research is the first to examine whether compassionate goals are more strongly associated with the willingness to help in ambiguous situations than self-image goals. Multiple studies have shown that when people have other-oriented motives to benefit the recipient, they gain more benefits from helping than when they help out of self-oriented motives to benefit the self (e.g., Canevello & Crocker, 2010;Caprariello & Reis, 2021;Girme et al., 2013;Wiwad & Aknin, 2017). However, only a few studies have focused on whether these motives are differently associated with offering help. ...
People do not always ask for help even when they need it. What motivates people to offer help when there is ambiguity surrounding whether the help is wanted or needed? In three studies, we demonstrated that people with a stronger motivation to support others’ well-being (i.e., have compassionate goals) were more willing to offer help to another person through a greater nonzero-sum mindset even in the absence of a request for help. In Study 1, compassionate goals were associated with a greater willingness to help at low and high levels of ambiguity in the U.S. and Japan. In Study 2, the perception that helping benefits oneself as well as others mediated the association between compassionate goals and willingness to help, regardless of culture and situational ambiguity. In Study 3, a nonzero-sum belief about relationships mediated the association between compassionate goals and spending more time helping a friend in Japan. In these studies, the motivation to project a desirable image of oneself (i.e., self-image goals) either showed weak, negative, or no associations with the willingness to help. These findings suggest that compassionate goals that do not involve self-sacrifice are a stronger motivator for helping in ambiguous situations.
... However, the ways that people experience and think about their willpower can also be consequential for (and may also be affected by) one's close relationships (Francis & Job, 2018). Many behaviours that are important for building and maintaining interpersonal relationships can be effortfulfrom the provision of support (Gosnell & Gable, 2017), to self-sacrifice (Righetti & Impett, 2017), to planning shared experiences (Girme et al., 2014) and these behaviours may be affected by people's experiences of mental fatigue or depletion. Because people who believe that their willpower is limited tend to experience more mental fatigue (Francis et al., 2020, they may feel like they have less energy to use for building or maintaining their romantic relationships, potentially resulting in lower relationship satisfaction both for themselves and for their romantic partners. ...
A limited willpower belief describes the belief that one’s willpower is depletable and that mental exertion results in a diminished self-control capacity. Limited willpower beliefs have been associated with detrimental personal outcomes (such as poorer goal progress) and may even be related to a lower quality of one’s romantic relationship. With dyadic survey data from 745 couples across 14 days, we investigated how willpower beliefs of both partners were associated with their provision and receipt of social support, as well as their relationship satisfaction. We also examined whether partners with more similar willpower beliefs tended to have higher relationship satisfaction. A limited willpower belief was indeed associated with less provision of both instrumental and emotional support, according to both partners’ perspectives, and was also associated with a lower likelihood of receiving instrumental support. A limited willpower belief negatively correlated with one’s own relationship satisfaction, but partner effects were not significant. While couples’ willpower beliefs were more similar to each other than would be expected by chance, degree of similarity in willpower beliefs was not related to relationship satisfaction. Future research should examine the mechanisms via which willpower beliefs are involved in romantic relationships, potentially through impacting the exchange of support.
... Couples who entered the pandemic with relatively low risk (economically stable, few individual vulnerabilities, and generally adaptive relationship strategies) and who experienced minimal personal and social losses as a result of the pandemic may be most likely to show resilience. They may even reap benefits from opportunities during lockdowns to spend more time together in novel and/or relaxing activities that promote relationship growth and intimacy (Gable et al., 2006;Girme et al., 2014). This idea remains to be examined in empirical studies within the context of the pandemic, but one qualitative study of open-ended survey responses (N = 200) and semi-structured interview responses (N = 48) during the early months of the pandemic (March 30 -April 21, 2020) in the UK offers some indirect support. ...
... Support, however, must be calibrated to the partner's needs because too much support can make individuals feel inadequate (Zee & Bolger, 2019), and being highly responsive can be taxing for those under high stress and with some personal vulnerabilities such as avoidant attachment (Smallen et al., 2021). Other routes to resilience include sharing positive experiences (Gable et al., 2004;Gable & Reis, 2010), engaging together in novel, fun activities (Aron et al., 2000;Girme et al., 2014), and expressing gratitude (Algoe et al., 2010), all of which can promote relationship growth and intimacy. follow from pandemic-related stress (Bradbury-Jones & Isham, 2020;Gresham et al., 2021). ...
Embedded within the sociocultural context of romantic relationships are features such as race, culture, neighborhoods, the legal system, and governmental policy. Due to the inherent difficulties with studying large structures and systems, little work has been done at the macro level in relationship science. This volume spotlights the complex interplay between romantic relationships and these structural systems, including varied insights from experts in the field. In turn, more diverse and generalizable research programs on the social ecology of relationships can be developed, helping to facilitate advances in theory. Scholars and students of relationship science in psychology, sociology, communication, and family studies will benefit from these discussions. This title is part of the Flip it Open programme and may also be available Open Access. Check our website Cambridge Core for details.
