Abstract
The Quality of Marriage Index (QMI) is a 6-item internationally widely-used instrument assessing relationship satisfaction. This study aimed to evaluate (1) the psychometric properties of the German version in a representative sample of the German general population (N = 1431) as well as (2) effects of gender and age on relationship satisfaction. All participants were in a relationship. The German QMI demonstrates good item characteristics and excellent reliability (α = .94). The proposed one-factor solution was replicated. Differences in scoring on the QMI showed that males scored higher than females and differences between younger and older participants were found. The findings suggest that the German version of the QMI is suitable to reliably measure relationship satisfaction and may therefore be used as a brief screening instrument in a variety of settings and research questions. A cross validation in a sample of couples seeking help for relationship difficulties should be considered in future research. The limited number of items and the one-factor-solution do not suggest this instrument as a fine-tuned assessment tool for different dimensions of relationship satisfaction.
Highlights
Relationship quality has been demonstrated to be an important indicator of adult, couple, and child well-being
The purpose of the present study was to examine the psychometric properties of the German version of the Quality of Marriage Index (QMI) in a representative sample as well as effects of gender and age on relationship satisfaction
The QMI which was developed by Norton [19], is an internationally extensively used instrument assessing relationship quality
Summary
Relationship quality has been demonstrated to be an important indicator of adult, couple, and child well-being. Being in a happy marriage is related to better psychological and physical health. This effect depends mainly on the relationship quality and not on partnership status in isolation [1,2]. Divorce and relationship deterioration are omnipresent and provoke substantial mental and physical health costs on individuals and society [3]. Low relationship quality emerged as a significant risk factor for mental health symptoms [4]. There is a high association between relationship distress and depression as well as substance abuse [5]. Relationship distress has been associated with higher incidence of both
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