Authenticity in Relationships: A Moderating Factor in Stress Communication and Marital Satisfaction during the First Five Years of Marriage
Abstract
The first five years of marriage are filled with role transitions in an individual's life. Therefore, dyadic coping strategies, especially stress communication, are important for maintaining marital satisfaction. Personality traits such as authenticity also play a role in this dynamic. Authenticity affects how individuals are able to communicate openly about their stress, thereby also affecting how they feel about their marriage. Participants in this study are 1228 Indonesian citizens in the first five years of marriage. Stress communication was measured by Stress Communication dimension in Dyadic Coping Inventory (DCI), Authenticity was measured with Kernis-Goldman Authenticity Inventory Short Form (KGAI-SF), and Marital satisfaction was measured using Revised Dyadic Adjustment Scale (RDAS). Interestingly, the moderation analysis shows that authenticity plays a significantly negative moderating role in the relationship between stress communication and marital satisfaction in the first five years of marriage. This suggests that when individuals become too authentic in their relationship, the positive effect of stress communication on marital satisfaction is weakened.
Downloads
References
Adams, B. A. (2019). The Critical First Years of Marriage: Foundations of Successful Relationships. Biola University. https://www.proquest.com/dissertations-theses/critical-first-years-marriage-foundations/docview/2211495087/se-2
Ahmed, J., & Naqvi, I. (2015). Personality traits and communication styles among university students. Pakistan Journal of Social and Clinical Psychology, 13(2), 53–59.
Allen, K. R., & Henderson, A. C. (2016). Family theories: Foundations and applications. John Wiley & Sons.
Anderson, S. R., Tambling, R. B., Huff, S. C., Heafner, J., Johnson, L. N., & Ketring, S. A. (2014). The development of a reliable change index and cutoff for the Revised Dyadic Adjustment Scale. Journal of Marital and Family Therapy, 40(4), 525–534. https://doi.org/10.1111/jmft.12095
Asselmann, E., & Specht, J. (2023). Changes in happiness, sadness, anxiety, and anger around romantic relationship events. Emotion, 23(4), 986. https://doi.org/10.1037/emo0001153
Bakshi, A., & Ansari, S. A. (2022). The Key Role of Vulnerability in Developing Authentic Connections in Romantic Relationships. Kıbrıs Türk Psikiyatri ve Psikoloji Dergisi, 4(1), 103–109. https://doi.org/10.35365/ctjpp.22.1.11
Bodenmann, G. (1995). A systemic-transactional conceptualization of stress and coping in couples. Swiss Journal of Psychology/Schweizerische Zeitschrift Für Psychologie/Revue Suisse de Psychologie.
Bodenmann, G. (2008). Dyadisches coping inventar (DCI).
Bodenmann, G., Arista, L. J., Walsh, K. J., & Randall, A. K. (2019). Dyadic coping inventory. In Encyclopedia of couple and family therapy (pp. 813–818). Springer. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-49425-8_678
Bond, M. J., Strauss, N. E., & Wickham, R. E. (2018). Development and validation of the Kernis-Goldman authenticity inventory-short form (KGAI-SF). Personality and Individual Differences, 134, 1–6. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.paid.2018.05.033
Brunell, A. B., Kernis, M. H., Goldman, B. M., Heppner, W., Davis, P., Cascio, E. V., & Webster, G. D. (2010). Dispositional authenticity and romantic relationship functioning. Personality and Individual Differences, 48(8), 900–905. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.paid.2010.02.018
Busby, D. M., Christensen, C., Crane, D. R., & Larson, J. H. (1995). A revision of the Dyadic Adjustment Scale for use with distressed and nondistressed couples: Construct hierarchy and multidimensional scales. Journal of Marital and Family Therapy, 21(3), 289–308. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1752-0606.1995.tb00163.x
Coughter, P. (2012). The art of the pitch: Persuasion and presentation skills that win business. Macmillan. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-137-51233-8
Dolan, P., Peasgood, T., & White, M. (2008). Do we really know what makes us happy? A review of the economic literature on the factors associated with subjective well-being. Journal of Economic Psychology, 29(1), 94–122. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.joep.2007.09.001
Du, J., Huang, J., An, Y., & Xu, W. (2018). The relationship between stress and negative emotion: The mediating role of rumination. Clinical Research and Trials, 4(1), 1–5. https://doi.org/10.15761/CRT.1000208
Falconier, M. K., & Kuhn, R. (2019). Dyadic coping in couples: A conceptual integration and a review of the empirical literature. Frontiers in Psychology, 10, 571. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2019.00571
Finch, J. K., & Fernández, C. (2019). What's in a smile? Happiness and communication from a cultural perspective. In A. L. Vangelisti (Ed.), The Routledge handbook of positive communication (pp. 41–49). Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781315207759-5
Ford, T. E., Lappi, S. K., & Holden, C. J. (2016). Personality, humor styles and happiness: Happy people have positive humor styles. Europe's Journal of Psychology, 12(3), 320. https://doi.org/10.5964/ejop.v12i3.1160
Frye, N., Ganong, L., Jensen, T., & Coleman, M. (2020). A dyadic analysis of emotion regulation as a moderator of associations between marital conflict and marital satisfaction among first-married and remarried couples. Journal of Family Issues, 41(12), 2328–2355. https://doi.org/10.1177/0192513X20935504
Girme, Y. U., Peters, B. J., Baker, L. R., Overall, N. C., Fletcher, G. J., Reis, H. T., Jamieson, J. P., & Sigal, M. J. (2021). Attachment anxiety and the curvilinear effects of expressive suppression on individuals' and partners' outcomes. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 121(3), 524–540. https://doi.org/10.1037/pspi0000338
Gravetter, F. J., & Forzano, L.-A. B. (2016). Research methods for the behavioral sciences (5th ed.). Cengage Learning.
Guillen, L., Karelaia, N., & Leroy, H. L. (2016). The authenticity gap: When authentic individuals are not regarded as such and why it matters. SSRN Electronic Journal. https://doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.2734779
Hall, S. S., & Adams, R. (2011). Newlyweds' unexpected adjustments to marriage. Family and Consumer Sciences Research Journal, 39(4), 375–387. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1552-3934.2011.02076.x
Hammett, J. F., Lavner, J. A., Karney, B. R., & Bradbury, T. N. (2021). Intimate partner aggression and marital satisfaction: A cross-lagged panel analysis. Journal of Interpersonal Violence, 36(3–4), NP1463–NP1481. https://doi.org/10.1177/0886260517747607
Harter, S. (2002). Authenticity. In C. R. Snyder & S. J. Lopez (Eds.), Handbook of positive psychology (pp. 382–394). Oxford University Press. https://doi.org/10.1093/oso/9780195135336.003.0027
Hayes, A. F. (2017). Introduction to mediation, moderation, and conditional process analysis: A regression-based approach (2nd ed.). Guilford Press.
Holmberg, D., Orbuch, T. L., & Veroff, J. (2003). Thrice told tales: Married couples tell their stories. Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781410609359
Impett, E. A., Javam, L., Le, B. M., Asyabi-Eshghi, B., & Kogan, A. (2013). The joys of genuine giving: Approach and avoidance sacrifice motivation and authenticity. Personal Relationships, 20(4), 740–754. https://doi.org/10.1111/pere.12012
Josephs, L., Warach, B., Goldin, K. L., Jonason, P. K., Gorman, B. S., Masroor, S., & Lebron, N. (2019). Be yourself: Authenticity as a long-term mating strategy. Personality and Individual Differences, 143, 118–127. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.paid.2019.02.020
Kernis, M. H., & Goldman, B. M. (2005). From thought and experience to behavior and interpersonal relationships: A multicomponent conceptualization of authenticity. In A. Tesser, J. V. Wood, & D. A. Stapel (Eds.), On building, defending, and regulating the self: A psychological perspective (pp. 31–52). Psychology Press.
Kifer, Y., Heller, D., Perunovic, W. Q. E., & Galinsky, A. D. (2013). The good life of the powerful: The experience of power and authenticity enhances subjective well-being. Psychological Science, 24(3), 280–288. https://doi.org/10.1177/0956797612450891
Lawrence, E., & Bradbury, T. N. (2001). Physical aggression and marital dysfunction: A longitudinal analysis. Journal of Family Psychology, 15(1), 135–149. https://doi.org/10.1037/0893-3200.15.1.135
Ledermann, T., Bodenmann, G., Rudaz, M., & Bradbury, T. N. (2010). Stress, communication, and marital quality in couples. Family Relations, 59(2), 195–210. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1741-3729.2010.00595.x
Lee, T. H., & Ng, T. K. (2024). Stress communication, communication satisfaction, and relationship satisfaction: An actor-partner interdependence mediation model. The Journal of Social Psychology, 164(5), 755–768. https://doi.org/10.1080/00224545.2023.2171848
Lench, H. C., Tibbett, T. P., & Bench, S. W. (2016). Exploring the toolkit of emotion: What do sadness and anger do for us? Social and Personality Psychology Compass, 10(1), 11–25. https://doi.org/10.1111/spc3.12229
Litzinger, S., & Gordon, K. C. (2005). Exploring relationships among communication, sexual satisfaction, and marital satisfaction. Journal of Sex & Marital Therapy, 31(5), 409–424. https://doi.org/10.1080/00926230591006719
Lopez, F. G., & Rice, K. G. (2006). Preliminary development and validation of a measure of relationship authenticity. Journal of Counseling Psychology, 53(3), 362–373. https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-0167.53.3.362
Markman, H. J., Rhoades, G. K., Stanley, S. M., Ragan, E. P., & Whitton, S. W. (2010). The premarital communication roots of marital distress and divorce: The first five years of marriage. Journal of Family Psychology, 24(3), 289–298. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0019481
McNulty, J. K., Wenner, C. A., & Fisher, T. D. (2016). Longitudinal associations among relationship satisfaction, sexual satisfaction, and frequency of sex in early marriage. Archives of Sexual Behavior, 45, 85–97. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10508-014-0444-6
Neff, K. D., & Harter, S. (2002). The authenticity of conflict resolutions among adult couples: Does women's other-oriented behavior reflect their true selves? Sex Roles, 47, 403–420. https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1021692109040
Pagani, A. F., Donato, S., Parise, M., Bertoni, A., Iafrate, R., & Schoebi, D. (2019). Explicit stress communication facilitates perceived responsiveness in dyadic coping. Frontiers in Psychology, 10, 401. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2019.00401
Panuzio, J., & DiLillo, D. (2010). Physical, psychological, and sexual intimate partner aggression among newlywed couples: Longitudinal prediction of marital satisfaction. Journal of Family Violence, 25(7), 689–701. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10896-010-9328-2
Papalia, D. E., & Martorell, G. (2012). Experience human development. McGraw-Hill Education.
Purol, M. F., Keller, V. N., Oh, J., Chopik, W. J., & Lucas, R. E. (2021). Loved and lost or never loved at all? Lifelong marital histories and their links with subjective well-being. The Journal of Positive Psychology, 16(5), 651–665. https://doi.org/10.1080/17439760.2020.1791946
Quek, K. M.-T., & Knudson-Martin, C. (2008). Reshaping marital power: How dual-career newlywed couples create equality in Singapore. Journal of Social and Personal Relationships, 25(3), 511–532. https://doi.org/10.1177/0265407508090871
Robles, T. F., Slatcher, R. B., Trombello, J. M., & McGinn, M. M. (2014). Marital quality and health: A meta-analytic review. Psychological Bulletin, 140(1), 140–167. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0031859
Ryan, R. M., & Deci, E. L. (2001). On happiness and human potentials: A review of research on hedonic and eudaimonic well-being. Annual Review of Psychology, 52(1), 141–166. https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev.psych.52.1.141
Schröder, J., & Schmiedeberg, C. (2015). Effects of relationship duration, cohabitation, and marriage on the frequency of intercourse in couples: Findings from German panel data. Social Science Research, 52, 72–84. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ssresearch.2015.01.009
Sokolski, D. M., & Hendrick, S. S. (1999). Fostering marital satisfaction. Family Therapy, 26(1), 39–51.
Soller, B. (2015). "I did not do it my way": The peer context of inauthentic romantic relationships. Sociological Perspectives, 58(3), 337–357. https://doi.org/10.1177/0731121415576578
South, S. C., Krueger, R. F., & Iacono, W. G. (2011). Understanding general and specific connections between psychopathology and marital distress: A model-based approach. Journal of Abnormal Psychology, 120(4), 935–947. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0025417
Tesser, A., Wood, J. V., & Stapel, D. A. (2005). Building, defending, and regulating the self: A psychological perspective. Psychology Press. https://doi.org/10.4324/9780203998052
Tou, R. Y., Baker, Z. G., Hadden, B. W., & Lin, Y.-C. (2015). The real me: Authenticity, interpersonal goals, and conflict tactics. Personality and Individual Differences, 86, 189–194. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.paid.2015.05.033
Tsai, W., & Lu, Q. (2018). Culture, emotion suppression and disclosure, and health. Social and Personality Psychology Compass, 12(3), e12373. https://doi.org/10.1111/spc3.12373
Twenge, J. M., Campbell, W. K., & Foster, C. A. (2003). Parenthood and marital satisfaction: A meta-analytic review. Journal of Marriage and Family, 65(3), 574–583. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1741-3737.2003.00574.x
Vanderbleek, L., Robinson III, E. H., Casado-Kehoe, M., & Young, M. E. (2011). The relationship between play and couple satisfaction and stability. The Family Journal, 19(2), 132–139. https://doi.org/10.1177/1066480711399729
Vangelisti, A. L. (2003). The family of the future: What do we face? In A. L. Vangelisti (Ed.), The Routledge handbook of family communication (pp. 699–722). Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781410609564
Wang, Y. N. (2016). Balanced authenticity predicts optimal well-being: Theoretical conceptualization and empirical development of the authenticity in relationships scale. Personality and Individual Differences, 94, 316–323. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.paid.2016.02.001
Ward, P. J., Lundberg, N. R., Zabriskie, R. B., & Berrett, K. (2009). Measuring marital satisfaction: A comparison of the revised dyadic adjustment scale and the satisfaction with married life scale. Marriage & Family Review, 45(4), 412–430. https://doi.org/10.1080/01494920902828219
Whisman, M. A. (2007). Marital distress and DSM-IV psychiatric disorders in a population-based national survey. Journal of Abnormal Psychology, 116(3), 638–648. https://doi.org/10.1037/0021-843X.116.3.638
Whisman, M. A., & Schonbrun, Y. C. (2010). Marital distr ess and relapse prevention for depression. In K. R. Lampert & K. E. Chung (Eds.), Advances in psychological science: Applications to mental health and well-being (pp. 71–91). Routledge.
Yusupova, A., Shved, D., Gushin, V., Chekalina, A., Supolkina, N., & Savinkina, A. (2022). Crew communication styles under regular and excessive workload. Acta Astronautica, 199, 464–470. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.actaastro.2022.05.053
Copyright (c) 2024 Phoebe Ramadina Pambudi, Yudiana Ratnasari
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
Authors who publish with this journal agree to the following terms:
1) Authors retain copyright and grant the journal the right to first publication, with the work simultaneously licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution that allows the sharing of articles published with the acknowledgement of authorship and the initial publication in this magazine.
2) The authors are authorized to make additional contracts separately for distribution of the version of the work published in this journal (for example, publication in an institutional repository or as a chapter of the book), as long as there is recognition of authorship and initial publication in this journal.
3) Authors are authorized and encouraged to publish and distribute their work online (for example, in institutional repositories or on their personal pages) at any time before or during the editorial process, as it increases the impact and reference of the published work.
