Mindfulness and Daily Negative Mood Variation in Romantic Relationships

Abstract

The current study examined the association between trait mindfulness and negative emotion regulation in the context of romantic relationships. Forty-seven cohabiting heterosexual couples participated in 24-day online daily questionnaires. Actor-partner interdependence modeling (APIM) was used to examine the associations between the five facets of mindfulness and both average level of negative mood and negative mood variation. Women with higher non-judging facet of mindfulness scores reported lower levels of average negative mood over the 24-day period (i.e., actor effect). There were also partner effects reflecting associations between one’s mindfulness and one’s partner’s negative mood variation. The non-reactivity and describing facets of mindfulness in women were associated with their partners having more stable mood (less negative mood variation), whereas the non-judging facet in men was associated with their partners reporting more stable mood (i.e., less negative mood variation). These findings suggest that although one’s own mindfulness is an important determinant of one’s own general mood disposition, variation in negative daily mood may be more likely to be influenced by one’s romantic partner.