Relationships among Belief in a Just World, Willingness to Accommodate, and Marital Well-Being

Abstract

The relationship between willingness to accommodate and belief in a just world (JW), possible mediators of this relationship, and their impact on marital satisfaction and perceived conflict were examined among older and younger married couples. In both samples, JW predicted greater willingness to accommodate. Among older couples, the relationship of JW to own accommodation was mediated by perceptions of spousal accommodation. Among younger couples, the relationship of JW to own accommodation was not explained by perceived spousal accommodation, trust, or partner perspective taking. Further, only among older couples did JW predict greater marital satisfaction and lower frequency of conflict. For older couples, the relationship of JW to satisfaction was not explained by own or perceived spousal accommodation; however; own and perceived spousal accommodation accounted for the relationship of JW to frequency of conflict. These studies suggest that belief in a just world contributes positively to interpersonal processes and marital well-being.