The evidence of the interrelationships between adult attachment, conflict resolution style and relationship quality in couple relationships shows some inconsistencies and it is mostly based on English-speaking adult samples, as well as on individuals’ rather than on both couple members’ reports. Therefore, the aim was to examine the associations between adult attachment, conflict resolution style and relationship quality from a dyadic approach. A sample of 405 heterosexual young couples completed online the brief version of the Experiences in Close Relationships-Revised Questionnaire, the respondent version of the Conflict Resolution Styles Inventory, and a 4-item measure of relationship quality. Avoidance attachment showed a stronger negative correlation than anxiety with relationship quality. Withdrawal and conflict engagement styles were more highly correlated with avoidance and anxiety, respectively. At a dyadic level, relationship quality was negatively predicted by actor avoidance attachment and positively predicted by partner relationship quality. No actor or partner effects of conflict resolution style on relationship quality were observed. Overall, partners with higher attachment anxiety and avoidance reported more dysfunctional conflict resolution styles and less satisfaction with the relationship.

The interpersonal nature of childhood abuse has led researchers to examine how abuse in childhood is associated with the quality of adult women's romantic relationships. Depression is one pathway by which childhood abuse may be associated with relationship quality. The current study considers whether childhood abuse is linked to positive and negative relationship quality through depressive symptoms. Data were obtained from women participating in the Longitudinal Study of Childhood Abuse and Neglect (LONGSCAN; N = 544) and were analysed using structural equation modelling. Results indicate a significant indirect effect from childhood abuse to both positive and negative quality through women's depressive symptoms. The indirect effect from abuse to negative relationship quality through depression was significantly larger than positive relationship quality. These results suggest that childhood abuse and subsequent depressive symptoms has a twofold effect on women's romantic relationships.

Substantial research shows that cardiovascular disease is a major cause of disability in the United States of America (USA) and worldwide. Despite the well-documented significance of intimate partnerships for cardiovascular health and disease management, how relationship quality contributes to the functional health of older adults diagnosed with cardiovascular disease is much less understood than mental health and mortality risk. Informed by the disablement process model and the lifecourse perspective, this study examines the association between relationship quality and functional limitations among partnered older adults aged 50 years and older diagnosed with cardiovascular disease in the USA. Data are from the Health and Retirement Study, 2006–2012 (N = 1,355). Multi-level linear regression analyses show that baseline negative relationship quality is significantly associated with increased functional limitations over the two- and four-year follow-ups. Additionally, the link between negative relationship quality and functional limitations is stronger among older adults with lower household income over a two-year span, compared to their higher-income counterparts, suggesting that these older adults are doubly disadvantaged by higher relationship strains and limited economic resources. Our findings demonstrate the significance of relationship quality for the functional health of older adults with cardiovascular disease and shed light on the importance of marriage/partnerships as an important social context for a critical stage in the disablement process (i.e. functional limitations).

This article presents the development of an instrument measuring relationship satisfaction, based on the theory that separates ‘relationship quality’ from ‘satisfaction’ concerning the semantic meaning of the concepts, and to evaluate psychometric properties of the new measure. Two studies were conducted in order to investigate the psychometric properties of the new scale, with 372 and 1,185 participants taking part in Study 1 and Study 2 respectively. Results revealed that the new scale has two-factor structure, adequate internal consistency reliability, and convergent, discriminant and known-groups validity.

This study examined changes in adolescents’ perceived relationship quality with mothers and fathers from middle school to high school, gender differences, and associated mental health consequences using longitudinal data from the New England Study of Suburban Youth cohort (n = 262, 48% female) with annual assessments (Grades 6–12). For both parents, alienation increased, and trust and communication decreased from middle school to high school, with greater changes among girls. Overall, closeness to mothers was higher than with fathers. Girls, compared to boys, perceived more trust and communication and similar levels of alienation with mothers at Grade 6. Girls perceived stronger increases in alienation from both parents and stronger declines in trust with mothers during middle school. Increasing alienation from both parents and less trust with mothers at Grade 6 was associated with higher levels of anxiety at Grade 12. Less trust with both parents at Grade 6 and increasing alienation and decreasing trust with mothers in high school were associated with higher levels of depressive symptoms at Grade 12. Overall, girls reported having higher levels of anxiety at Grade 12 compared to boys. Findings on the course of the quality of parent–adolescent relationships over time are discussed in terms of implications for more targeted research and interventions.

This article examines concurrence of self-reported love, trust, and dyadic quality experiences between partners in 293 male couples. Significant yet poor concurrence was observed for all three self-reported relationship measures, but varied by relationship characteristics. Using an actor-partner interdependence model (APIM), actor and partner characteristics were shown to be associated with self-reported relationship concerns, such as satisfaction and intimate partner violence. This knowledge is important in the development and delivery of couples-based health interventions, such as couples HIV testing and counselling, for interventions that respect the unique relationship dynamics of each couple are needed to effectively address dyadic health.

Mate poaching occurs when a person attracts another, whom he or she knows is already in an exclusive relationship, into a sexual or romantic relationship. Mate poaching is involved in the evolution of many relationships. Yet, little is known about the quality of these relationships. We examined relationship quality between individuals whose relationships were formed via mate poaching versus not (i.e., a relationship formed serially without overlap with another relationship). We compared ratings of quality from the perspectives of poachers, poached, and co-poached individuals. Adult participants (n = 660) in a romantic relationship responded to questions assessing relationship quality. Those in relationships formed from poaching rated their relationships as lower in relationship satisfaction, commitment and trust, and higher in jealousy, and had higher rates of romantic and sexuality infidelity in their current relationship compared to individuals in non-poached relationships. Those who were poached from an existing relationship rated their current relationship as lower in commitment than did those who poached their current partner into a relationship. The study also provides first insights regarding relationship quality for those who identify as co-poached. We discuss these findings in terms of implications for understanding how relationships are formed and the qualities of those that endure.

This study investigates the origins of discrete interpersonal emotions in team-member dyads using two independent samples from an education institute and a telecommunication services company in China. Results across both studies showed that the quality of team members’ dyadic relationships positively relates to interpersonal admiration, sympathy, and envy, and negatively relates to interpersonal contempt. Furthermore, teams’ cooperative goals moderate these dyad-level linkages. The association of relationship quality with interpersonal emotions is particularly pronounced in teams with less cooperative goals but buffered in teams with more cooperative goals. Finally, on the individual level of analysis, envy and contempt are inversely associated with team members’ work performance, objectively measured. These findings provide new insights about key antecedents and crucial moderators in the development of interpersonal emotions in Chinese work teams and reiterate the relevance of these emotions for tangible performance outcomes.

Theories concerning hatred in personal relationships lack empirical evidence. These two studies address the need to provide empirical information about how hate works in interpersonal, loving relationships. Effort justification theory (Aronson & Mills, 1959) suggests that past hate may have a beneficial function in relationships that remain together; however, if hate is a truly destructive motivation (Rempel & Burris, 2005), this hate may have a lasting irreconcilable impact on the quality of the relationship. By surveying people in both the United States and Norway about their personal loving relationships, we discovered that hatred leaves a lasting deleterious impression on interpersonal relationships. People are more likely to report less intimacy, satisfaction, and love with people they have previously hated. Furthermore, effort justification and cognitive dissonance, when measured as relationship length, was observed in the report of higher commitment to those previously hated. Future assessments of relationship quality should consider measuring hatred and length of relationship.

This paper uses a strategy—structure—performance-based model of marketing channel relationship structure to conduct an empirical examination of the involvement of four external stakeholder groups in manufacturing firms' product innovation. The results show that firms' stakeholder orientation (strategy), involvement of stakeholders in product innovation (structure) and quality of stakeholder relationships (performance) are intrinsically linked. Also, the way in which multiple stakeholder groups were involved in manufacturing firms' product innovation was more similar than different.

Supplier–buyer exchange relationship and quality of that relationship (supplier satisfaction and commitment) have been examined from various angles in the extant literature. Yet, there is a paucity of research investigating the influence of supplier characteristics – especially supplier resilience – on relationship quality. Driven to fill this gap, this study aims to develop theory of the influence of perceived benefits from supplier–buyer exchange relationship and supplier resilience on relationship quality. Data drawn from 97 supplier–buyer dyads were used. Hierarchical regression analyses showed the positive influence of both perceived benefits from supplier–buyer exchange relationships and supplier resilience on relationship quality. Further empirical and theoretical implications, as well as the limitations of the study, are discussed.

Relationships form the essence of personality and contribute to the individual's wellbeing. Keeping in view the significance that relationships may have on an individual, it becomes compelling to examine relationship quality, the central guiding force of relationships. Relationship quality — the positive or negative feelings about a relationship — is termed an ambiguous concept. The purpose of this article is to review the literature of relationship quality to develop a deep understanding of the construct, by exploring its various determinants. The article begins with a description of the construct followed by a detailed exploration of the factors that determine relationship quality. Research suggests that a wide range of factors have an influence on relationship quality. These include, among others, self-verification and self-enhancement, personality, emotional intelligence, interaction patterns, and partner support. Economic factors also play an important role in determining relationship quality. Previous research also suggests that most of the research on relationship quality has been done on either marital relationships or dating relationships. Further, the determinants of relationship quality may be different with respect to different types of relationships. Additionally, research suggests that relationship quality has been examined using multiple methods, which strengthens the claim of relationship quality being a complex and ambiguous construct.

The assessment of attachment beyond infancy remains a controversial issue. Over the past 20 years adolescent attachment has been assessed in a variety of ways but no ‘gold standard’ for its measurement has emerged. Considering the complexity of attachment theory and the implications for measuring such relationships during adolescence, this article undertakes a review of self-report attachment measures utilised for this age group. Results of a comprehensive PsycInfo literature search are examined with regard to studies reporting the measurement of adolescent attachment. A total of 822 citations were retrieved for the years 1990 to 2012; 394 of these abstracts were further scrutinised for use in the current review. Descriptive data from citations are reported for the measure of attachment used, sample size, age range, and psychometric properties. Following this, the most commonly used self-report measures of attachment for adolescents are reviewed in detail. Theoretical and methodological concerns regarding the measurement of adolescent attachment are discussed and recommendations made regarding key issues to consider for the development of new instruments grounded in contemporary theory and evidence.

A new measure, Partner Behaviours as Social Context (PBSC), was developed and tested in two studies (N = 215, N = 316) and tested as a correlate of psychological wellbeing in a third (N = 157). Self-Determination Theory (Deci & Ryan, 2000) and related research has suggested that there are six important dimensions of partner behaviours, which should be associated with individual psychological need fulfilment, wellbeing and development. Three of these dimensions are positive, including warmth, or provision of love/affection; autonomy support, or supporting a partner's decisions; and structure, or being consistent and reliable. Three of these dimensions are negative, namely rejection, or ignoring/being hostile to a partner; coercion, or being controlling/demanding; and chaos, or unpredictability. Factor analysis supported the six-dimensional construct. The six PBSC dimensions, positive and negative subscales and total score had good distributional properties, high internal consistency, related as expected to other relationship quality measures, and diverged from most personality constructs. All PBSC scales were related to wellbeing, with some behaviours more related than others. For example, coercion was strongly associated with compromised wellbeing, while warmth showed weak, positive associations with positive functioning. The PBSC is expected to have utility in both research and clinical settings.

The current study describes from an attachment-theoretical viewpoint how intergenerational support in adult child-parent relationships is associated with wellbeing in both generations. The attachment perspective and its focus on affective relationship characteristics is considered as an important theoretical framework for the investigation of special relationships across the life span. Data from the Netherlands Kinship Panel Study (N=1,456 dyads) were analysed to investigate if relationship quality moderated the association between providing intergenerational support to parents and wellbeing in adult children, on the one hand, and receiving intergenerational support from children and wellbeing of older parents on the other hand. The perspectives of both relationship partners were taken into account to allow for dependence within dyads. Intergenerational support, in terms of instrumental help provision, was negatively associated with the child's and parent's wellbeing. Being the stronger and wiser partner in adult-child parent relationships, as reflected by giving advice and being the initiator within the relationship, was beneficial for the wellbeing of both generations. Additionally, relationship quality was the strongest predictor of wellbeing in both generations. Parental wellbeing was benefited by filial support in high quality relationships. If an intergenerational relationships was of high quality, the challenges of intergenerational support provision and receipt were easier to deal with for both generations, parents and children.