Relational mobility predicts social behaviors in 39 countries and is tied to historical farming and threat.

Biologists and social scientists have long tried to understand why some societies have more fluid and open interpersonal relationships and how those differences influence culture. This study measures relational mobility, a socioecological variable quantifying voluntary (high relational mobility) vs. fixed (low relational mobility) interpersonal relationships. We measure relational mobility in 39 societies and test whether it predicts social behavior. People in societies with higher relational mobility report more proactive interpersonal behaviors (e.g., self-disclosure and social support) and psychological tendencies that help them build and retain relationships (e.g., general trust, intimacy, self-esteem). Finally, we explore ecological factors that could explain relational mobility differences across societies. Relational mobility was lower in societies that practiced settled, interdependent subsistence styles, such as rice farming, and in societies that had stronger ecological and historical threats.

Understanding the Links Between Perceiving Gratitude and Romantic Relationship Satisfaction Using an Accuracy and Bias Framework.

Perceiving a partner's gratitude has several benefits for romantic relationships. We aimed to better understand these associations by decomposing perceptions into accuracy and bias. Specifically, we examined whether accuracy and bias in perceiving a partner's experience (Study 1: Ndyads= 205) and expression (Study 2: Ndyads= 309) of gratitude were associated with romantic relationship satisfaction. Using the Truth and Bias Model of Judgment, we found that perceivers generally underestimated their partner's gratitude, and lower perceptions of gratitude were related to lower perceiver satisfaction. Perceivers reported greater satisfaction when they assumed their partner's gratitude was similar to their own. Partners reported greater satisfaction when perceivers accurately gauged their partners' gratitude experience (but not expression) and lower satisfaction when perceivers underestimated their gratitude expression (but not experience). Overall, by decomposing gratitude perceptions into accuracy and bias, we provide insight into how these components differentially relate to relationship satisfaction.

Sacrifices: Costly prosocial behaviors in romantic relationships.

Although previous research has found that prosocial behavior increases personal and relationship well-being, a particularly costly type of prosocial behavior - sacrifice - can sometimes have aversive effects and is the focus of the current review. We consider effects for both the individual who enacts the sacrifice and the recipient. Sacrifice, can take a toll on the giver's well-being, is a mixed blessing for the recipient (when they perceive the sacrifice), and may have some harmful consequences for relationships in the long-run. We discuss the importance of finding the right strategies (e.g. alternative solutions, comparison of costs and rewards between partners, reappraisals) to navigate these complex interpersonal situations in which partners' goals and preferences conflict.

Relationship functioning following a large-scale sacrifice: Perceived partner prosociality buffers attachment insecurity.

In a sample of 229 individuals who recently undertook a large-scale sacrifice by relocating for their romantic partner's job or schooling (i.e., accompanying partners), we tested preregistered predictions linking accompanying partners' attachment insecurities (i.e., attachment anxiety and attachment avoidance) and relationship functioning (i.e., relationship quality, relationship conflict, and move-related relationship benefits). We also examined whether any negative associations found among accompanying partners' attachment insecurities and relationship functioning could be buffered by partner prosociality in the form of perceived partner gratitude (i.e., partners' expressions of move-related and general gratitude) and perceived partner sacrifice (i.e., partners' daily sacrifice behaviors and general willingness to sacrifice). Results showed that more insecurely attached accompanying partners reported worse relationship functioning after moving than their secure counterparts. Although gratitude and sacrifice did not buffer insecurely attached individuals' relationship conflict, both perceived partner general gratitude and willingness to sacrifice partially buffered avoidantly attached individuals from experiencing lower relationship quality, while move-related gratitude helped avoidantly attached individuals to feel that the move benefitted their relationship. Meanwhile, perceived partner sacrifice behaviors buffered anxiously attached individuals from experiencing lower relationship quality. This is the first study to demonstrate, in an ecologically valid sample, the implications of a large-scale sacrifice for insecurely attached accompanying partners' relationship functioning, as well as the protective effects of perceiving a partner's prosociality following the major life transition of job relocation. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved).

Lightening the load: Perceived partner responsiveness fosters more positive appraisals of relational sacrifices.

Romantic partners regularly sacrifice their own self-interest when partners' needs and preferences diverge. The present work examines the role of perceived partner responsiveness (PPR)-impressions that one's partner is understanding, caring, and validating-in positively shaping people's appraisals of their relational sacrifices. In Study 1, a preregistered experiment of romantically involved individuals (N = 548), we manipulated PPR (high, low, or control) in a hypothetical sacrifice scenario. In Study 2, we tracked romantic couples' (N = 126) in-lab conversations about a sacrifice (Study 2a), and their sacrifices in daily life (Study 2b). In Study 3, romantic couples (N = 111) engaged in lab conversations about a sacrifice that entailed making a change that one partner desired from the other, and reported on their progress 2 weeks later. In Study 4, we surveyed romantically involved individuals (N = 230) who recently made a life-changing sacrifice by relocating to a new city or country to support their partner's career. Across studies, results showed that higher PPR fostered more positive sacrifice appraisals (i.e., lower costs and viewing the act as less of a sacrifice, greater satisfaction, greater personal and relational benefits, lower regret) and greater sacrifice behavior (Study 3)-in part due to greater closeness with and lower negative affect toward the partner. Additionally, Study 4 suggested that PPR partly originated from the partner's efforts to fulfill fundamental psychological needs (i.e., autonomy, competence, relatedness). Thus, PPR can play a critical role in lightening the load of daily and even life-changing sacrifices. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved).

Growing desire or growing apart? Consequences of personal self-expansion for romantic passion.

Romantic passion represents one of the most fragile and elusive elements of relationship quality but one that is increasingly valued and tied to relationship and individual well-being. We provide the first examination of whether experiencing personal self-expansion-positive self-change and personal growth without a romantic partner-is a critical predictor of passion. Previous research has almost exclusively examined the consequences of couples' sharing novel experiences (i.e., relational self-expansion) on romantic relationships. Instead, the consequences of personal self-expansion for romantic relationships remain largely unexamined even though most positive self-growth may occur without a romantic partner (e.g., at work). We investigated the consequences of personal self-expansion for passion in three studies including two 21-day experience sampling studies of community couples and a study in a context likely to elicit heightened personal self-expansion: during job relocation. Within-person increases in daily personal self-expansion were associated with greater passion through greater positive emotions (Studies 1 and 2). In contrast, high between-person levels of personal self-expansion were associated with lower passion through lower levels of intimacy, suggesting that individuals may drift apart from their partners with more chronic personal self-expansion (Studies 1, 2, and 3). That is, consistently growing outside of the relationship in ways that are not shared with a romantic partner may reduce feelings of closeness and connection, and ultimately passion. Results also suggest that chronic personal self-expansion may be a double-edged sword for individual well-being, simultaneously associated with lower passion, but greater fulfillment of competence needs. Results controlled for relational self-expansion and time together. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2021 APA, all rights reserved).

It's the motive that counts: Perceived sacrifice motives and gratitude in romantic relationships.

Gratitude is robustly linked to many positive outcomes for individuals and relationships (e.g., greater life and relationship satisfaction). However, little is known about how romantic partners come to feel grateful for each other's pro-relational acts, such as when a partner makes a sacrifice. The present research examines how perceptions of partner sacrifice motives evoke gratitude. We distinguish between partner, relationship, and self-focused motives, and how they are guided by approach or avoidance orientations. We expected that perceiving a partner to sacrifice for partner-focused approach motives (i.e., to promote the partner's well-being) should evoke gratitude, as this type of motive may signal a genuine departure from self-interest. Moreover, we expected these motives to provoke greater perceptions of partner responsiveness, which should partially explain why they elicit gratitude. In contrast, perceiving a partner to sacrifice for relationship-focused motives (e.g., to promote the well-being of the relationship), or self-focused motives (e.g., to feel good about oneself), should not evoke gratitude-irrespective of an approach or avoidance orientation-as these motives may, to some extent, be perceived as tainted by self-interest. Two studies of romantic couples (N = 413), using diary methods (Studies 1 and 2) and having couples converse about a major sacrifice in the laboratory (Study 2), consistently showed that perceived partner-focused approach motives promote gratitude and that this association is partly mediated by perceived partner responsiveness. In contrast, relationship and self-focused motives (approach and avoidance oriented) were not associated with gratitude. Implications regarding perceiving and displaying sacrifice motives are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record

The burden of empathy: Partners' responses to divergence of interests in daily life.

Empathy has often been discussed as a beneficial process from which favorable individual and interpersonal experiences may be derived. The present work investigates whether empathy may sometimes be a burden rather than a benefit, under certain interpersonal circumstances. Specifically, we hypothesized that encountering situations of divergence of interests with a partner may cause discomfort, and that empathizing with one's partner would exacerbate this discomfort, resulting in higher levels of negative mood and stress that can affect relationship satisfaction. We tested these hypotheses using innovative experience sampling methodology in which both partners reported on their experiences in their natural environments. In support, we found that when people encountered divergence of interests with one's partner, as compared with when they did not, they experienced higher negative mood and stress and, consequently, lower relationship satisfaction. These effects were intensified, rather than reduced, by empathy. (PsycINFO Database Record