Don’t Drag Me Down
Valence Asymmetry in Well-Being Co-Development in Couples
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 21209855 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Olga Stavrova (0000-0002-6079-4151, Tilburg University, corresponding author), W J Chopik (0000-0003-1748-8738, Michigan State University) |
| Year | 2025 |
| Volume | 16 |
| Issue | 2 |
| Pages | 159-172 |
| Publication date | 2025-03-01 |
| Peer Reviewed | Yes |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Social Psychological and Personality Science (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 1948-5506 • E-ISSN: 1948-5514 |
| Publisher | SAGE Publications (PUBLISHER • US) |
| DOI | 10.1177/19485506231207673 |
| OpenAlex | W4388090106 |
| Language | EN |
| References cited | 59 |
There is a notable similarity in psychological well-being among romantic partners. Drawing on valence asymmetry research (e.g., negativity bias), we tested whether partners’ convergence toward a similar level of well-being is marked by the happier partner’s over-time deterioration or by the less happy partner’s over-time improvement. In two studies using nationally representative samples of German and Dutch couples ( N couples =21,894) followed for 37 (Study 1) and 14 (Study 2) years, we compared romantic partners’ well-being trajectories. Over time and within each couple, the happier partner experienced the most dramatic well-being declines; the unhappier partner’s well-being either did not change or increased slightly. Across all model specifications, the decline experienced by the happier partner was significantly stronger than any improvement reported by the less happy partner. The results provide the first evidence for a “negativity bias” in well-being co-development in couples and contribute to literatures in developmental psychology and relationship science
Developmental psychology · German · Happiness · Negativity bias · Negativity effect · Psychoanalysis · Romance · Attachment and Relationship Dynamics · Personality Traits and Psychology · Psychological Well-being and Life Satisfaction · Psychology · Social Psychology
Regression to the mean
Social connectedness as a source and consequence of meaning in life
Three‐month‐olds show a negativity bias in their social evaluations
The Influence of Partner’s Behavior on Health Behavior Change
Emotional Contagion
Assortative mating and couple similarity
Negativity Bias, Negativity Dominance, and Contagion
Experimental evidence of massive-scale emotional contagion through social networks
The development of markers for the Big-Five factor structure.
The Satisfaction With Life Scale
Emotional contagion in online groups as a function of valence and status
The Prospective Effect of Life Satisfaction on Life Events
You Can't Be Happier than Your Wife
How was your day? Couples’ affect when telling and hearing daily events
Attachment style and two forms of affect coregulation between romantic partners
Development and validation of brief measures of positive and negative affect
Affect contagion in daily life is mediated by perceptions of partner affect
Assessing the validity of single-item life satisfaction measures
The evaluative information ecology
Health concordance within couples
Consumer Demand for Cynical and Negative News Frames
Actor, partner, and similarity effects of personality on global and experienced well-being
Until death do us part
Stress and Strain Crossover
Happily (n)ever after? Codevelopment of romantic partners in continuing and dissolving unions
Spousal interrelations in happiness in the Seattle Longitudinal Study
Codevelopment of well-being and self-esteem in romantic partners
Exploring Small, Confirming Big
The sky is falling
Similarity, convergence, and relationship satisfaction in dating and married couples
Emotional convergence between people over time
Honey, I got fired! A longitudinal dyadic analysis of the effect of unemployment on life satisfaction in couples
Shared experiences and the similarity of personalities
Spousal similarity in life satisfaction before and after divorce
For better or worse? Coregulation of couples’ cortisol levels and mood states
Bad is Stronger than Good
The manipulation of affect
Not all emotions are created equal
Subjective well-being
Emotional Transmission in Couples Under Stress
Transition into Retirement Affects Life Satisfaction
Environmental Influences on Well-Being
| Citation velocity | historical |
|---|---|
| Highly cited | No |