Personal Relationships

This article discusses the conceptual meaning of partner effects, which occur when one person is affected by the behavior or characteristics of his or her partner. We show that partner effects can be used to validate the presence of a relationship and can elaborate the particular nature of that relationship. We discuss possible moderation of partner effects and show that many theoretical variables in relationship research (e.g., similarity) can be viewed as the interactions of partner effects with other variables. We present three extended examples that illustrate the importance of partner effects.

DAVID A. KENNY

WILLIAM COOK

Partner effects in relationship research: Conceptual issues, analytic difficulties, and illustrations

Gratitude and indebtedness are differently valenced emotional responses to benefits provided, which have implications for interpersonal processes. Drawing on a social functional model of emotions, we tested the roles of gratitude and indebtedness in romantic relationships with a daily-experience sampling of both members of cohabiting couples. As hypothesized, the receipt of thoughtful benefits predicted both gratitude and indebtedness. Men had more mixed emotional responses to benefit receipt than women. However, for both men and women, gratitude from interactions predicted increases in relationship connection and satisfaction the following day, for both recipient and benefactor. Although indebtedness may maintain external signals of relationship engagement, gratitude had uniquely predictive power in relationship promotion, perhaps acting as a booster shot for the relationship.

SARA B. ALGOE

SHELLY L. GABLE

NATALYA C. MAISEL

It's the little things: Everyday gratitude as a booster shot for romantic relationships

Abstract This longitudinal study investigated a new conceptualization of the effectiveness of social support attempts called social support effectiveness (SSE) that takes into account the quantity and quality of support attempts and the extent to which they meet the needs of recipients. SSE was assessed in a sample of 176 pregnant women with regard to their partners’ social support behaviors. Potential antecedents of SSE were investigated, including individual and relationship variables. In addition, it was hypothesized that women who appraised their partner’s support as more effective would have lower prenatal anxiety, both concurrently (in mid‐pregnancy) and prospectively (in late pregnancy). Factor analyses confirmed that all hypothesized aspects of SSE contributed to a unitary factor of SSE. Structural equation modeling was used to test the proposed antecedents and consequences of SSE. Results revealed that women’s ratings of the effectiveness of partner support were predicted by their interpersonal orientation (adult attachment, network orientation, kin individualism–collectivism, and social skills) and by characteristics of their relationships with their partners (relationship quality, emotional closeness and intimacy, and equity). Furthermore, women who perceived themselves to have more effective partner support reported less anxiety in mid‐pregnancy and showed a reduction in anxiety from mid‐ to late pregnancy. Findings are discussed with regard to implications for advancing research on social support processes, especially within relationship contexts.

CHRISTINE RINI

CHRISTINE DUNKEL SCHETTER

CALVIN J. HOBEL

LAURA M. GLYNN

CURT A. SANDMAN

Effective social support: Antecedents and consequences of partner support during pregnancy

有效的社会支持：孕期伴侣支持的前因与后果

Abstract That intimacy and social support are related to an individual's health and well‐being has often been noted. The present study had two goals. First, we intended to establish whether intimacy and social support were related to mental and physical health in a large, representative community sample. Second, we sought to determine whether intimacy and social support make unique contributions to predicting health, as a step toward developing a model of the relation between these processes. Results strongly supported the initial hypothesis that intimacy and social support were both related to health status. We also found that the effects of intimacy on well‐being were mediated by social support, but that the effects of social support were not mediated by intimacy. We therefore concluded that the health‐promoting benefits of intimacy most likely occur because intimate relationships are likely to engender higher levels of social support. Distinguishing unique and shared prediction effects is a generic concern for disciplines that study variables that are naturally correlated in real life, such as in the field of personal relationships.

HARRY T. REIS

PETER FRANKS

The role of intimacy and social support in health outcomes: Two processes or one?

亲密关系与社会支持在健康结果中的作用：两个过程还是一个？

Abstract This study used cubic polynomial regression with response surface analysis to examine the associations that mate value discrepancies (i.e., the difference between an individual's self‐reported mate value and their perceptions of their partner's mate value) had with mate retention behaviors performed by the individual and their perceptions of the mate retention behaviors performed by their partner. The sample included 1083 undergraduates, and the results revealed a congruence effect such that participants who perceived themselves and their romantic partners to have similarly low levels of mate value reported high levels of cost‐inflicting behaviors by themselves and their partners. There was also a curvilinear association that emerged for mate value discrepancies such that individuals who perceived themselves to have higher levels of mate value than their partners reported higher levels of cost‐inflicting behaviors by themselves and their romantic partners. These results demonstrate how cubic response surface analysis can allow for a better understanding of the connections that mate value discrepancies have with outcomes in romantic relationships.

Gracynn Young

Virgil Zeigler‐Hill

Jessica Ross

Mate value discrepancies and mate retention behaviors: A cubic response surface analysis

伴侣价值差异与伴侣保留行为：三次响应面分析

Abstract Close relationships are associated with many positive outcomes throughout life, including improved physical health and well‐being. Traditionally, theory and research on the health benefits of close relationships have focused on either the total amount of support perceived available within a person's entire social network or the support provided by romantic partners (Shankar et al. in Psychology and Health , 30(6), 686–698; 2015). Limited work has examined the impact of distinct relationship types, particularly friends. In this article, we address this critical gap in our current knowledge. First, we identify the features of friends and friendship networks that distinguish them from other types of adult relationships, especially romantic relationships. Second, we use the strength and strain model (Slatcher &amp; Selcuk in Current Directions in Psychological Science , 26(1), 16–21; 2017) as a framework to consider how adult friendships might impact physical health in ways similar to but also distinct from romantic partners. Utilizing this specific model, we identify features of friendships—the size and structure of friendship networks, the norms that define friendships, and the levels of interdependence in friendships—and discuss how each feature can amplify or blunt the strengths and strains afforded by friends, including their impact on health. Finally, we provide a roadmap and identify priorities to advance research on friendships and physical health.

Grace Vieth

Alexander J. Rothman

Jeffry A. Simpson

Mapping the integration of adult friends into the study of close relationships and health

将成年朋友融入亲密关系与健康研究的地图

Abstract Depressive symptoms can spillover between romantic partners. From an attachment lens, depressive symptoms passing from one partner to another may be more frequent in the context of anxious attachment. Using 1179 German couples who remained together across 4 years (five waves) from the Panel Analysis on Intimate Relationships and Family Dynamics, analyses tested the extent anxious attachment moderated the initial level of depressive symptom spillover between partners' depressive symptom trajectories. Results revealed that men's and women's higher initial depressive symptoms were not significantly associated with changes in their partners' depressive symptom trajectories. However, the current study found that women's anxious attachment was associated with the link between men's initial depressive symptoms and the trajectory of women's depressive symptoms. Specifically, women who were more anxiously attached had a small, but greater risk of experiencing increased depressive symptom spillover across a four‐year period when their male partners had higher initial depressive symptoms. Together, this suggests depressive symptom spillover did occur among a general population of German couples, but primarily in the context of more anxiously attached women. Future research should examine the role attachment plays in the depressive symptom spillover among couples.

Preston C. Morgan

Jared A. Durtschi

Salena King

Depressive symptoms spillover between romantic partners partially explained by anxious attachment

抑郁症状在浪漫伴侣间的溢出部分由焦虑型依恋解释

Abstract This study examines age discrepancies in couples formed at various stages of life. Both evolutionary and sociocultural perspectives suggest that people's preferences for their partner's age gradually change throughout their lifespan. This study includes European couples ( N = 35,996; 51% women and 49% men) surveyed in two waves of the panel study Survey of Health, Ageing, and Retirement in Europe (SHARE). A linear regression model was employed to analyze age differences in couples concerning when the relationship began. For men, the projected age of their partner decreased by nearly 1 year for every 5 years of their age. A similar but smaller effect was observed for women. These findings were consistent across 29 countries and indicated that men tended to be more inclined to start relationships with younger partners as they grew older. Conversely, women's initial tendency to partner with slightly older individuals shifted toward same‐aged partners as they aged. These results indirectly suggest that preferences in age‐related mate selection may systematically change as individuals grow older. An evolutionary and sociocultural rationale for age disparities seems plausible for men, regardless of their age, whereas sociocultural influences come into play for women as they age.

Jaroslav Gottfried

Anna Ševčíková

Lukas Blinka

Andrea Lambert South

Couples age discrepancies in a large‐scale European sample: Evolutionary and sociocultural perspectives

大规模欧洲样本中的夫妻年龄差异：进化与社会文化视角

Abstract This study explores the rising trend of loneliness and depression among adolescents in the context of Chinese culture, investigating the relationship between different patterns of disclosure and secrecy and adolescent anxiety and loneliness. A person‐centered approach was used to explore disclosure and secrecy in relationships of 253 adolescents ( M = 15.52, range = 14–18, 54.4% female) from Nanjing's public schools and the impact of these patterns on their levels of depression and loneliness. The results indicate that adolescent disclosure and secrecy toward parents and good friends are correlated with adolescent depression and loneliness. Five groups can be identified based on disclosure and secrecy, with each group demonstrating significant differences in the degree of disclosure and secrecy and distinct characteristics. Significant differences exist in the levels of adolescent depression and loneliness among the different groups. This study emphasizes the value of a person‐centered approach. Findings suggest that having multiple avenues for dialogue is more beneficial than merely increasing the volume of disclosure within any single channel. This emphasizes the importance of a diversified support network in enhancing adolescent well‐being. The research also recognizes that small samples can uncover more complex or diversified groups that exhibit unique behavioral patterns within specific cultures.

Yuen‐Ki Tang

Associations between self‐disclosure, secrecy, and adolescent well‐being in China: A person‐centered approach

自我披露、保密与青少年福祉在中国之关联：一种以人为中心的视角

Abstract Interpersonal conflicts are common in romantic relationships. How to respond and cope with conflicts impacts the romantic relationship process and outcomes. This study examined the heterogeneity of Chinese youth's cognitive emotion regulation (CER) strategies and conflict resolution responses, as well as their collective influence on individuals' perceived partner responsiveness (PPR) and relationship satisfaction. We recruited 300 Chinese youth who were currently involved in romantic relationships to complete self‐reported measures of CER (reappraisal and suppression), conflict resolution responses in romantic relationships (exit, voice, neglect, and loyalty), PPR, and relationship satisfaction. We used latent profile analysis (LPA) to classify the combined effects of CER and conflict resolution responses, identifying four profiles: releasing, gentle, proactive, and inhibiting. Proactive communicators have significantly higher levels of relationship satisfaction compared to the other three groups and significantly higher levels of PPR compared to individuals in releasing and inhibiting profiles. Individuals in releasing and gentle profiles have significantly higher relationship satisfaction and PPR than individuals in the inhibiting profile. This study uncovered the possible associations between Chinese young adults' emotion regulation and conflict response profiles and romantic relationship process and outcome by adopting the person‐centered approach. We further discussed the practical implications of the findings.

Lu Ran Zhang

Wei‐Wen Chen

Chinese young adults' emotion regulation and conflict resolution response profiles, and their associations with perceived partner responsiveness and romantic relationship satisfaction

中国青年情感调节与冲突解决反应特征及其与伴侣反应性和恋爱关系满意度的关联

Abbreviation	Pers Relationship
Journal Impact	1.78
Quartiles(Global)	PSYCHOLOGY, SOCIAL(Q3)

ISSN	1350-4126, 1475-6811
h-index	97

Publication Information	Publisher: Wiley-Blackwell Publishing Ltd，Publishing cycle: ，Journal Type: journal，Open Access Journals: No
Basic data	Year of publication: 1994，Proportion of original research papers: 74.42%，Self Citation Rate:5.60%， Gold OA Rate: 25.49%

Personal Relationships

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