Predictors of change in relationship satisfaction among Black postpartum mothers.

The transition to parenthood can be a challenging time for the relationships of new parents and result in declines in relationship satisfaction. Although a robust literature has identified characteristics that predict changes in relationship satisfaction during this period, the relationships of Black mothers postpartum remain understudied. To address this gap, we examined a set of relational, individual, and external characteristics as predictors of relationship satisfaction trajectories over the first four months postpartum. First-time Black mothers (N = 93, 22.6% married, 52.7% cohabiting, 24.7% not cohabiting) reported on relational, individual, and external characteristics at 1 week postpartum and their relationship satisfaction at 1, 8, and 16 weeks postpartum. Mothers who reported more commitment and partner support were higher in initial satisfaction, as were mothers who were married or cohabiting with a partner (relative to mothers who were not cohabiting with their partner). Mothers with clinically significant depressive symptoms at 1 week postpartum had lower initial relationship satisfaction than mothers without clinically significant depressive symptoms. Mothers' sleep difficulties and experiences of racial discrimination were associated with changes in relationship satisfaction over time; mothers experiencing more sleep difficulties and racial discrimination experienced larger declines in satisfaction. These findings offer new insights into risk and protective factors associated with relationship satisfaction among Black mothers during the early postpartum period and can inform multicomponent interventions to enhance their relationship functioning.

Household income differentiates quantity and quality of shared spousal time.

Shared time is a centrally important component of relationship maintenance, and over the past few decades, couples have reported spending increasingly more time together. However, over this same time period divorce rates have risen much higher for lower income couples compared to higher income couples. One theorized explanation for the disparity in divorce rates between lower and higher income couples is a difference across the socioeconomic strata in the quantity and quality of time couples spend together. This theory argues that lower income couples may experience a time deficit because they face a greater number of stressors that take up time, diminishing the quantity of time they have available to spend together. They may also need to use the time they do have available to deal with stressors rather than engaging in more enjoyable activities together, diminishing the quality of time they share. Using a sample of N = 14,788 respondents from the American Time Use Survey, the present study examined whether household income was associated with the quantity and quality of time married couples spend together. Consistent with predictions, lower income couples spent less alone time together but this was moderated by weekday versus weekend and presence of children. Lower income couples also reported higher levels of stress during time spent with their spouse than higher income couples, and this association was moderated by hours worked by the couples. Results support the theory, indicating that quantity and quality of time may be important factors in understanding differences in relationship outcomes between lower and higher income couples. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2023 APA, all rights reserved).

Enhancing fathers' parenting through strengthening couple functioning: A randomized controlled trial of low-income couples.

OBJECTIVE: High levels of father engagement are associated with better outcomes for children across a number of domains. Correlational evidence suggests that the quality of the romantic relationship between parents plays a strong role in the extent to which fathers are meaningfully involved with their children, but existing literature cannot address whether this link is causal. To address this gap, the present study leveraged data from a randomized controlled trial of a couple-focused relationship education program for low-income couples to examine whether intervention-induced improvements in couple functioning led to better fathering outcomes. METHOD: Data were drawn from the Supporting Healthy Marriages study, in which 6,298 low-income, married couples with children were randomized to an intervention or control condition. Couple relationship functioning was assessed 12-months postrandomization, and fathering behavior across four dimensions (involvement, warmth, responsiveness, and monitoring) was assessed 30-months postrandomization. RESULTS: Structural equation models revealed that the intervention had a significant direct effect on fathers' and mothers' couple functioning, but did not have a significant direct effect on fathering outcomes. However, the intervention did have a significant indirect effect on fathering outcomes through fathers' ratings of couple functioning, such that the intervention was associated with small positive indirect effects on fathers' involvement, warmth, responsiveness, and monitoring. CONCLUSIONS: Intervention-derived improvements in the couple relationship led to improvements in father engagement, supporting a causal association between these variables. Couple-focused interventions may be a viable option to enhance couple functioning and (indirectly) fathers' parenting among families living with low incomes. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2023 APA, all rights reserved).

Recruitment and retention of diverse couples in relationship education with integrated economic services.

Compared to higher income couples, those with low incomes experience a host of challenges and disparities in their intimate relationships, including lower levels of relationship satisfaction, higher rates of breakup of cohabiting relationships, and higher rates of divorce. In recognition of these disparities, a number of interventions targeting couples with low incomes have been developed. These interventions historically focused primarily on improving relationship skills through relationship education, but in recent years a new approach that integrates economic-focused interventions alongside relationship education has emerged. This integrated approach is intended to better address the challenges facing couples with low incomes, but the theory-driven, top-down approach to intervention development leaves open the question of whether couples with low incomes are interested in participating in a program that combines these two disparate components. The current study draws from a large randomized controlled trial of one such program (N = 879 couples) to provide descriptive information about the recruitment and retention of couples with low incomes in a study of relationship education with integrated economic services. Results indicate that it is possible to recruit a large, linguistically, and racially diverse sample of couples living with low income to participate in an integrated intervention, but the uptake of relationship-focused services was higher than the uptake of economic-focused services. Additionally, attrition over a 1-year follow-up data collection period was low but required labor-intensive efforts to reach participants for the survey. We highlight successful strategies for the recruitment and retention of diverse couples and discuss implications for future intervention efforts.

How diverse are the samples used to study intimate relationships? A systematic review.

The social and behavioral sciences have long suffered from a lack of diversity in the samples used to study a broad array of phenomena. In an attempt to move toward a more contextually-informed approach, multiple subfields have undertaken meta-science studies of the diversity and inclusion of underrepresented groups in their body of literature. The current study is a systematic review of the field of relationship science aimed at examining the state of diversity and inclusion in this field. Relationship-focused papers published in five top relationship science journals from 2014-2018 (N = 559 articles, containing 771 unique studies) were reviewed. Studies were coded for research methods (e.g., sample source, dyadic data, observational data, experimental design) and sample characteristics (e.g., age, education, income, race/ethnicity, sexual orientation). Results indicate that the modal participant in a study of romantic relationships is 30 years old, White, American, middle-class, college educated, and involved in a different-sex, same-race relationship. Additionally, only 74 studies (10%) focused on traditionally underrepresented groups (i.e., non-White, low-income, and/or sexual and gender minorities). Findings underscore the need for greater inclusion of underrepresented groups to ensure the validity and credibility of relationship science. We conclude with general recommendations for the field.

Experiencing a Natural Disaster Temporarily Boosts Relationship Satisfaction in Newlywed Couples.

How do natural disasters affect intimate relationships? Some research suggests that couples are brought closer together after a disaster, whereas other research suggests that relationships become more strained in the aftermath. Yet all of this work is limited by a lack of predisaster data that would allow for examination of how relationships actually change. The current study is the first to use longitudinal data collected before and after a natural disaster to examine its effect on relationship outcomes. Using a sample of 231 married couples in Harris County, Texas, who experienced Hurricane Harvey, we found that spouses experienced significant increases in satisfaction from before to after the hurricane, but the increase was temporary; couples decreased in satisfaction after the initial boost. Thus, couples appear to grow closer in the immediate aftermath of a natural disaster but then revert to their prehurricane levels of functioning as the recovery period continues.

Too Stressed to Help? The Effects of Stress on Noticing Partner Needs and Enacting Support.

Although couples' support exchanges are especially important during times of stress, coping with stress often taxes individuals' energy and resources and may render it more difficult for partners to provide support to one another. In a daily diary study of 121 married couples, we examined whether spouses' chronic and daily non-marital stressors were associated with their capacity to accurately perceive their partner's support needs and to provide support when needed. Consistent with the notion that stress may be linked to reduced perspective-taking, husbands experiencing greater chronic stress were less accurate in their assessments of their partner's support needs across the diary days. Moreover, even when husbands did notice that their partner desired support, they were less likely to provide support if they were coping with their own stress that day. Thus, the findings highlight the multiple pathways through which stress can undermine support provision within relationships.

The development of communication behavior over the newlywed years.

Communication behavior occupies a fundamental role in basic and applied relationship science, yet we know very little about how this important process develops over time, and how the natural developmental process is linked with relationship outcomes. The present study aims to examine the development of naturally occurring trajectories of couple communication behavior across three domains, examined concurrently; positive affect, negative affect, and effective problem solving. A large sample of newlywed couples recruited from low-income neighborhoods (N = 431) completed observational discussion tasks at 4 time points, spanning 2.5 years, and provided data on marital status 4.5 years into marriage. Results from multivariate group-based trajectory modeling indicate that three groups of couples can be distinguished, with the best communicators demonstrating high levels of positivity and effectiveness and low levels of negativity, the worst communicators demonstrating low levels of positivity and effectiveness and high levels of negativity, and the middle group demonstrating low levels of all three dimensions. Trajectory group membership was significantly associated with demographic and relationship characteristics, such that the best communicators had more adaptive relationship characteristics and less demographic risk. Wives' trajectory group membership was significantly associated with divorce rates such that the best communicators had the lowest divorce rate (9%), and the worst communicators had the highest divorce rate (22%). Overall, communication behavior is quite consistent over time, indicating that early interaction dynamics tend to be enduring and predictive of relationship outcomes. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2021 APA, all rights reserved).

Early Effects of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Relationship Satisfaction and Attributions.

How has the COVID-19 pandemic affected intimate relationships? The existing literature is mixed on the effect of major external stressors on couple relationships, and little is known about the early experience of crises. The current study used 654 individuals involved in a relationship who provided data immediately before the onset of the pandemic (December, 2019) and twice during the early stages of the pandemic (March and April, 2020). Results indicate that relationship satisfaction and causal attributions did not change over time, but responsibility attributions decreased on average. Changes in relationship outcomes were not moderated by demographic characteristics or negative repercussions of the pandemic. There were small moderation effects of relationship coping and conflict during the pandemic, revealing that satisfaction increased and maladaptive attributions decreased in couples with more positive functioning, and satisfaction decreased and maladaptive attributions increased in couples with lower functioning.

Trajectories of Marital Satisfaction in Diverse Newlywed Couples.

Couples' marital satisfaction is thought to decline over the newlywed years, but recent research indicates that the majority of spouses have high, stable trajectories during this period and significant declines occur only among initially dissatisfied spouses. These findings are drawn from predominantly White, middle-class samples, however, which may over-estimate marital stability compared to samples with higher levels of sociodemographic risk. Accordingly, the current study tested the generalizability of newlyweds' marital stability by examining satisfaction trajectories among 431 ethnically diverse newlywed couples living in low-income neighborhoods. Consistent with previous work, most spouses had high levels of satisfaction, substantial declines were limited to spouses with lower initial levels of satisfaction, and divorce significantly differed between groups. Wives with higher levels of sociodemographic risk started marriage less satisfied and declined more in satisfaction. Overall, these findings reveal risky and resilient relationships among disadvantaged couples, with considerable stability during the newlywed years.

A Comparison of Low-Income Versus Higher-Income Individuals Seeking an Online Relationship Intervention.

Compared to higher-income couples, low-income couples experience higher rates of relationship disruption, including divorce and breakup of cohabiting relationships. In recognition of this disparity in relationship outcomes, relationship interventions have increasingly been targeted at this population. However, these interventions have had limited impacts on the relationships of low-income couples. Developing interventions that are effective and responsive to the needs of low-income couples requires descriptive data on the challenges those couples perceive in their own relationships and an assessment of how their needs compare to the more affluent couples typically served by relationship interventions. The current study sampled over 5,000 individuals at the time they were seeking an online relationship intervention and compared the relationship functioning and life circumstances reported by low-income individuals to that of higher-income individuals. Results indicate that low-income individuals seeking a relationship intervention had higher levels of relationship distress (lower relationship satisfaction, more intense primary relationship problems, and less relationship stability), and had greater levels of contextual stress (more children living at home, less likely to be employed full-time, and lower levels of perceived health). Results suggest that future interventions designed to target low-income couples, as well as practitioners working with low-income couples, should be prepared to handle higher levels of relationship distress and contextual stressors than they may typically see in more affluent couples.

En comparación con las parejas de recursos más altos, las parejas de bajos recursos tienen índices altos de dificultades en las relaciones, incluidos el divorcio y la ruptura de las relaciones de convivencia. En reconocimiento de esta disparidad en las consecuencias de las relaciones, se han destinado cada vez más a esta población intervenciones en las relaciones. Sin embargo, estas intervenciones han tenido efectos limitados en las relaciones de las parejas de bajos recursos. El desarrollo de intervenciones que sean eficaces y sensibles a las necesidades de las parejas de bajos recursos exige datos descriptivos sobre las dificultades que esas parejas perciben en sus propias relaciones y una evaluación de cómo sus necesidades se comparan con las de las parejas más pudientes que normalmente reciben intervenciones en las relaciones. El presente estudio tomó muestras de más de 5000 personas en el momento en que estaban buscando una intervención en las relaciones por internet y comparó el funcionamiento de las relaciones y las circunstancias de vida informadas por personas de bajos recursos con las de personas de recursos más altos. Los resultados indican que las personas de bajos recursos que buscaban una intervención en las relaciones tenían niveles más altos de distrés relacional (una menor satisfacción con las relaciones, problemas más intensos en las relaciones principales y menos estabilidad relacional) y tenían niveles más altos de estrés contextual (más niños viviendo en la casa, menos probabilidades de estar empleados tiempo completo y niveles más bajos de salud percibida). Los resultados sugieren que las futuras intervenciones diseñadas para las parejas de bajos recursos, así como los profesionales que trabajan con estas parejas deberían estar preparados para manejar niveles más altos de distrés relacional y factores de estrés contextual que los que pueden ver normalmente en las parejas más pudientes.

Premarital parenthood and newlyweds' marital trajectories.

An increasing number of couples in the United States are entering their first marriage having already had a child together, raising important questions about whether and how these couples' marriages differ from newlywed couples who enter marriage without children. The current study used 5 waves of data collected over the first 4.5 years of marriage from a sample of ethnically diverse, first-married newlywed couples living with low incomes to examine the effects of premarital parenthood on couples' self-reported satisfaction, observed communication, and marital dissolution over time. Among couples who entered marriage with a shared biological child (premarital parents), satisfaction levels were lower and communication was less effective, less positive, and more negative than couples entering marriage without children. Rates of change in marital functioning did not differ between groups, but the rate of marital dissolution was twice as high among premarital parents (19.1%) relative to couples who were not parents at the start of marriage (9.5%). These between-groups differences remained robust after controlling for several demographic differences (race, age, education, household income, work status, relationship length, premarital cohabitation), and initial differences in communication did not account for between-groups differences in marital satisfaction or dissolution. Together, these findings indicate that newlywed marriage unfolds in similar ways for low-income couples with and without children at the start of marriage, but couples raising children at the time of marriage have greater vulnerability to marital distress and dissolution. Further research is needed to characterize this risk and how interventions can offset it. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2020 APA, all rights reserved).

Barriers and facilitators of relationship help-seeking among low-income couples.

Despite being at elevated risk for relationship distress and dissolution, couples living with low incomes are less likely than their middle-class counterparts to participate in couple therapy. To increase treatment use among economically disadvantaged couples, information is needed on how they perceive barriers to treatment and on factors that might facilitate their help-seeking. The first aim of the present study was to identify the prevalence of attitudinal, structural, and relational barriers to seeking therapy for the relationship among individuals who perceived a need for help with their relationship. The second aim was to test whether having direct experience with a relationship intervention (through receipt of premarital education) or indirect experience (by having a social network member who has received couple therapy) is associated with reduced barriers and greater use of therapy for the relationship. Using self-report data from 231 ethnically diverse newlywed couples living in low-income neighborhoods, we find that men and women identify cost and uncertainty about where to go for help as their top two barriers to seeking therapy for the relationship, followed by the partner not wanting therapy (for women) and the belief that individual counseling would be more helpful than couple therapy (for men). Direct and indirect experiences with relationship interventions was associated with increased likelihood that couples sought therapy for the relationship. These results suggest specific directions that can be taken to improve the accessibility of interventions, thereby providing low income couples with resources that might enhance their relationship. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2019 APA, all rights reserved).

Premarital education and later relationship help-seeking.

Despite evidence that empirically supported couple therapies improve marital relationships, relatively few couples seek help when they need it. Low-income couples are particularly unlikely to engage in relationship interventions despite being at greater risk for distress and dissolution than their higher-income counterparts. The present study aimed to clarify how premarital education influences couples' progression through different stages of later help-seeking, as identified in prior research. Using 5 waves of self-report data from a sample of 431 ethnically diverse newlywed couples living in low-income neighborhoods, analyses revealed that wives who received premarital education later considered seeking therapy at a higher level of relationship satisfaction and lower level of problem severity than those who did not receive premarital education, though this was not true for husbands. Wives who received premarital education were also more likely as newlyweds to say that they would seek therapy if their relationship was in trouble, though husbands were not. Spouses who considered seeking therapy were more likely to follow through with participation if they had received premarital education, whereas if they had not received premarital education they were more likely to consider seeking therapy without following through. Similarly, among couples who received therapy, those who also received premarital education sought therapy earlier than those who did not receive premarital education, though not at a higher level of relationship satisfaction. Taken together, these results suggest that participation in premarital education is linked with later help-seeking by empowering couples to take steps throughout their marriage to maintain their relationship. (PsycINFO Database Record

Communication moderates effects of residential mobility on relationship quality among ethnically diverse couples.

Although interpersonal communication is a defining feature of committed relationships, the quality of couple communication has not proven to be a straightforward cause of relationship quality. At the same time, emerging models argue that external circumstances likely combine with communication to generate changes in relationship quality. We integrate these 2 ideas by proposing that communication does exert effects on changes in relationship quality, but primarily when couples encounter challenging situations that require an adaptive response. In the present study we examine residential moves to different neighborhoods as one such adaptive challenge. We conducted a longitudinal study of 414 newlywed couples to examine whether observed communication moderates the effect of moving to higher- or lower-income neighborhoods on changes in relationship quality. Results indicate that communication exerts no main effects on relationship quality. Consistent with the proposed model, however, wives who displayed less positive, less effective, and more negative behaviors experienced greater decreases in relationship quality, but only when couples moved to substantially higher-income neighborhoods. Because communication may not affect relationship quality until couples encounter qualitatively new demands, strengthening relationships may pivot less on improving communication skills and more on ensuring that couples' circumstances do not overwhelm the skills that they already possess. (PsycINFO Database Record

Bidirectional Associations Between Newlyweds' Marital Satisfaction and Marital Problems over Time.

Prevailing views of marital functioning generally adopt the view that marital problems predict decreases in marital satisfaction, but alternative theoretical perspectives raise the possibility that lowered satisfaction can also predict increases in problems. The current study sought to integrate and compare these perspectives by examining the bidirectional cross-lagged associations between newlyweds' reports of their marital satisfaction and marital problems over the first 4 years of marriage. Using annual assessments from 483 heterosexual newlywed couples, we find evidence for problem-to-satisfaction linkages as well as satisfaction-to-problem linkages. Satisfaction was a stronger predictor of marital problems early in marriage but not as time passed; by Year 4 only problem-to-satisfaction linkages remained significant. These findings are consistent with the idea that couples with more problems go on to report lower levels of satisfaction and couples with lower levels of satisfaction go on to report more marital problems. This dynamic interplay between global judgments about relationship satisfaction and ongoing specific relationship difficulties highlights the value of examining bidirectional effects to better understand marital functioning over time.

Education and job-based interventions for unmarried couples living with low incomes: Benefit or burden?

OBJECTIVE: Government initiatives undertaken to improve the earning potential of disadvantaged unmarried parents assume that job training and additional schooling will strengthen these families, yet alternative models predict that these same interventions could overwhelm couples' limited resources, undermining family stability. METHOD: We use 3 waves of dyadic data and propensity score analysis to test these competing perspectives by examining the effects of job-related and school-related interventions on 3-year marriage rates. The sample consists of unmarried new parents averaging $20,475 in household income, 52% of whom are African American and 20% of whom are Hispanic/Latino. RESULTS: Marriage rates decreased, from 17% to 10%, for couples in which men participated in school-related interventions. Mediation analyses indicate that school-related interventions reduce the amount of time men spend with their child and the amount of money they contribute to their household, reducing marriage rates in turn. Marriage rates were unaffected by women's participation in school-related interventions, and by men's and women's participation in job-related interventions. CONCLUSION: Implementing economic interventions that increase income while minimizing demands on the limited resources of economically distressed couples may prove necessary for strengthening society's most vulnerable families. (PsycINFO Database Record

Effects of relationship education on couple communication and satisfaction: A randomized controlled trial with low-income couples.

OBJECTIVE: Although preventive educational interventions for couples have been examined in more than 100 experimental studies, the value of this work is limited by reliance on economically advantaged populations and by an absence of data on proposed mediators and moderators. Data from the Supporting Healthy Marriage Project-a randomized, controlled trial of relationship education for couples living with low incomes-were therefore analyzed to test whether intervention effects on relationship satisfaction would be mediated by observational assessments of relationship communication and whether any such effects would be moderated by couples' pretreatment risk. METHOD: Within the larger sample of Supporting Healthy Marriage Project couples randomized to a relationship education or no-treatment control condition, the present analyses focus on the 1,034 couples who provided (a) data on sociodemographic risk at baseline, (b) observational data on couple communication 12 months after randomization, and (c) reports of relationship satisfaction 30 months after randomization. RESULTS: Intervention couples reported higher satisfaction at 30 months than control couples, regardless of their level of pretreatment risk. Among higher risk couples, the intervention improved observed communication as well. Contrary to prediction, treatment effects on satisfaction were not mediated by improvements in communication, and improvements in communication did not translate into greater satisfaction. CONCLUSIONS: Relationship education programs produce small improvements in relationship satisfaction and communication, particularly for couples at elevated sociodemographic risk. The absence of behavioral effects on satisfaction indicates, however, that the mechanisms by which couples may benefit from relationship education are not yet well understood.

The salience and severity of relationship problems among low-income couples.

Developing programs to support low-income married couples requires an accurate understanding of the challenges they face. To address this question, we assessed the salience and severity of relationship problems by asking 862 Black, White, and Latino newlywed spouses (N = 431 couples) living in low-income neighborhoods to (a) free list their 3 biggest sources of disagreement in the marriage, and (b) rate the severity of the problems appearing on a standard relationship problem inventory. Comparing the 2 sources of information revealed that, although relational problems (e.g., communication and moods) were rated as severe on the inventory, challenges external to the relationship (e.g., children) were more salient in the free listing task. The pattern of results is robust across couples of varying race/ethnicity, parental status, and income levels. We conclude that efforts to strengthen marriages among low-income couples may be more effective if they address not only relational problems, but also couples' external stresses by providing assistance with child care, finances, or job training.

Are Problems that Contribute to Divorce Present at the Start of Marriage, or Do They Emerge Over Time?

Divorced individuals offer explanations for why their relationship ended, yet little is known about the development of these problems during the relationship. Problems that lead to divorce may exist at the beginning of the marriage (enduring dynamics model) or may develop over time (emergent distress model). We asked 40 divorced individuals about the reasons for their divorce and compared the development of problems that did and did not contribute to their divorce over the first few years of their marriage. Results support an emergent distress model for wives; they saw problems that lead to divorce increasing over time, whereas results for husbands indicated that they were less attuned to problems overall, suggesting that wives are the bellwether for relationship problems.