Relationship Quality Components Research Articles

Can Romantic Relationship Quality Mediate the Relation Between Psychopathy and Subjective Well-Being?

The relations between psychopathy, romantic relationships, and well-being were investigated in 431 undergraduates. For both males and females, various components of romantic relationship quality were positively correlated with subjective well-being (SWB) and negatively correlated with ill-being. However, only for females was overall romantic relationship quality positively correlated with life satisfaction, happiness and positive affect, and negatively correlated with negative affect and depression. High levels of psychopathy were found in 23.1 % of males and 7.4 % of females. Psychopathy accounted for significant variance in overall relationship quality (7.0 %), commitment (14.1 %), satisfaction (9.3 %), romance (10.7 %) and trust (6.4 %) in romantic relationships for males and in overall relationship quality (3.2 %), commitment (5.3 %), and trust (5.9 %) for females. Romantic relationship quality was able to mediate the relations between psychopathy and SWB and this mediation was moderated by gender.

The cross-impact of network externalities on relationship quality in exhibition sector

An exhibition is a kind of network business that confers benefits for participants that are often intangible and hard to evaluate. This paper addresses this issue as limited empirical research has been conducted on the effects of cross-network externalities in exhibition sector. The paper also addresses relationship quality, a relatively new concept within the hospitality literature, and investigates the effects of cross-network externalities on service quality and relationship quality, and their impact on customer loyalty. The results of this study (n=412) show that the exhibition market exhibits cross-network externalities and that business network size has a significant influence on service quality, exhibitor satisfaction, and exhibitor trust. It is also argued that business network size and three components of relationship quality significantly affect exhibitor loyalty. This study provides valuable insights for exhibition organizers to formulate their relationship marketing strategies.

Relationship quality in captive bonobo groups

We use Principal Component Analyses (PCA) to describe components of social relationship quality in bonobos. We find a three component structure, with the first two components, labelled Value and Compatibility, closely matching the theoretical constructs as well as components reported for chimpanzees and other primates. The third component differed but was abandoned based on Parallel Analysis. Among bonobos, female–female dyads have higher Value and Compatibility. Relationships between males are characterised by low Value and Compatibility. Dyads that had been housed together for a longer time and maternally related ones also have more valuable relationships, while individuals close in rank have low compatibility. The results confirm the strong bonds among female bonobos, but for the first time can describe how they differ qualitatively from close bonds reported for captive chimpanzee females. We suggest future studies should also include Parallel Analysis to more accurately describe the number of components in relationship quality.

The Role of Service Quality, Perceived Value, and Relationship Quality in Enhancing Customer Loyalty in the Travel Agency Sector

ABSTRACTRelationship quality is crucial to enhancing a tourist’s loyalty. Little empirical research has been conducted to link service quality, perceived value, and relationship quality to customer loyalty in the travel agency sector. This study attempts to investigate the role of service quality, perceived value, and relationship quality on customer loyalty among tourists. Relationship quality consists of three components: customer satisfaction, customer trust, and customer commitment. Structural equation modeling is used to test the linkages between the six variables that have been identified. Findings reveal that service quality and perceived value of a travel package are antecedent factors to the relationship quality with a travel agency; three components of relationship quality significantly influence a customer’s loyalty to a travel agency.

Perceived sexual satisfaction among women with drug-dependent husbands in Iran

Background: Sexual satisfaction is known as one of the most important components of relationship satisfaction and quality of life. The present study aimed to evaluate the associated parameters of sexual satisfaction among female spouses of male drug dependents as one of the hidden populations in Iran.Method: A total of 138 women with drug-dependent husbands were included in this cross-sectional study. Sociodemographic characteristics, anxiety and depression scores, sexual function and emotional parameters were entered into a stepwise linear regression model to find the possible predictors.Findings: Mean age, marital length and spousal drug use length were 35 ± 8, 14 ± 10 and 12 ± 8 years, respectively. Perceived lack of security [p < 0.001, B = 0.630, 95% confidence interval (CI) = 0.364–0.897], history of physical abuse by husband (p < 0.001, B = 0.297, 95% CI = 1.912–5.771) and marital length (p = 0.003, B = 0.142, 95% CI = 0.048–0.236) were found to be significantly associated with sexual satisfaction among female spouses of male drug dependents in Iran.Conclusion: Results of the current study highlight the need for more attention to environmental and sociocultural parameters as the associated parameters of sexual satisfaction among female spouses of male drug dependents. Further research is needed with respect to a multidimensional evaluation of sexual satisfaction among this vulnerable hidden population in Iran, especially to find causative relations.

How Adult Attachment and Personality Traits are Related to Marital Quality: The Role of Relationship Attributions and Emotional Reactions

The purpose of this research was to explore the role of General Factor of Personality (GFP) and adult attachment dimensions in marital quality through relationship attributions and emotional reactions. The sample consisted of 261 couples who were married at least more than one year and had no major stressful events in their lives up to the time of the study. In this study, the NEO-Five Factor Inventory (NEO-FFI), the Experiences in Close Relationships Questionnaire-Revised (ECR-R), the Relationship Attribution Measure (RAM), the Geneva Emotion Wheel (GEW), and the Perceived Relationship Quality Components (PRQC) were used for collecting the data. Structural equation modeling (SEM) was employed to analyze the data. The results suggest that attachment anxiety and attachment avoidance and GFP directly and indirectly, through relationship attributions and emotional reactions, were related to marital quality. In addition, relationship attributions are antecedent to emotional reactions. Based on the findings, an intrapersonal-situational model of marital quality is suggested.

Relationship quality in business to business: a cross‐cultural perspective from universities

PurposeThe objective of this study is to analyse relationship quality in a business‐to‐business context. Given that the relationship between market orientation and customer‐perceived service quality is well known in the area of higher education, this paper draws on its antecedents to examine relationship quality in cultural services.Design/methodology/approachA sample of 68 customers (cultural entities) was obtained from a postal survey (April 2010). Partial least squares (PLS) models were used to test the proposed hypotheses. This is a structural equation (SEM) technique based on variances that is suited to working with small and medium sized samples.FindingsThe authors’ results show that satisfaction, trust and commitment are key components of relationship quality. While service quality is a determining factor of satisfaction, relationship quality can be improved by taking into account that customer‐perceived market orientation acts as a precursor for service quality, satisfaction and commitment.Originality/valueThis article attempts to expand upon the previous relationship quality literature on business‐to‐business relationships to: study behaviours conducive to lasting relationships between two different sectors (higher education and cultural industry); understand the antecedents of relationship quality; confirm relationship quality dimensions; and compare the hypothesized relationships from the customer's perspective.

Image Congruence and Relationship Quality in Predicting Switching Intention

The present study (a) examined the effect of image congruence on dimensions of relationship quality (satisfaction and trust) and switching intention, (b) investigated the mediating effect of relationship quality components, and (c) tested the moderating impact of the conspicuousness of product use on the links among these variables. A survey was conducted at luxury restaurants in a metropolitan city. Overall fit of the proposed model and research hypotheses were tested through structural equation modeling and a series of modeling tests for metric invariance. The results showed that social and ideal social image congruencies had a critical role in explaining relationship quality and switching intention; relationship quality components significantly mediated the influence of image-congruence factors on intention; and conspicuousness of product use was found to affect the image-congruence components (satisfaction links), the social image congruence (trust link), and the trust (switching intention link). The findings emphasize the significance of study variables in decreasing restaurant customers’ intention to switch.

Sexual Satisfaction, Relationship Satisfaction, and Health Are Associated with Greater Frequency of Penile–Vaginal Intercourse

Heiman et al. (2011) reported that in a large sample of midlife and older couples in five countries, frequency of sexual activity in the past 4 weeks was associated with greater sexual satisfaction but unrelated to relationship happiness in both sexes, which led them to state that ‘‘[T]he degree of independence/dependence of sexuality and relationship satisfaction is a point of disagreement in the literature with evidence in both directionsbutoftensupportingamore independent factor structure’’ (p. 751). The determinants of sexual and relationship satisfaction are certainly an important topic to be examined cross-culturally. However, the summary measure of sexual activity that they employed is misleading, as it suggests that all partnered sexual activities could contribute equally well to sexual satisfaction, and that relationship happiness is largely independent from the sexual activity of the couple. In fact, when sexual activities are differentiated, a different picture emerges. In large nationally representative Swedish and Czech samples, univariate analyses showed that sexual and relationship satisfaction were associated with greater frequency of penile– vaginal intercourse (PVI) (Brody & Costa, 2009; Brody & Weiss, 2011; Weiss & Brody, 2011). Sometimes, in univariate analyses, greater frequency of partnered noncoital activities is associated with sexual and relationship satisfaction (Brody & Costa, 2009), but univariate analyses might be misleading because many people have noncoital sex as a preliminary to PVI. Indeed, multivariate analyses controlling for frequency of specific sexual behaviors (and age) reveal that sexual and relationship satisfaction are positively associated with PVI frequency, but unrelated or even inversely related to frequency ofpartnered noncoital sexualactivities (BrodyC Philippsohn & Hartmann, 2009; Tao & Brody, 2010). In a Portuguese study, greater PVI frequency was associated with several components of relationship quality (satisfaction, love, trust, intimacy, and passion). Noncoital partnered sex frequency was unrelated to all components of relationship quality, and masturbation was inversely associated with love (Costa & Brody, 2007). Interestingly, other sexual factors that contribute to sexual and relationship satisfaction beyond PVI frequency are other aspects of PVI, such as satisfaction from PVI (Philippsohn & Hartmann, 2009), erectile function (Weiss & Brody, 2011), simultaneous PVI orgasm (Brody & Weiss, 2011), and capacity to attain vaginal orgasm (triggered by penile–vaginal stimulation without simultaneous clitoral masturbation) (Brody, 2007; Brody & Weiss, 2011; Costa & Brody, 2007). In the cited Czech study, for both sexes, simultaneous PVI orgasm was associated with sexual and relationship satisfaction, independently of the significant contribution of PVI frequency (Brody & Weiss, 2011), and scores on the International Index of Erectile Function-5 (IIEF-5) generated by both men or female partners were equally associated with sexual and relationship satisfaction, independently of the significant contributions of PVI frequency and, in the case of women, also of the capacity to attain vaginal orgasm (Weiss & Brody, 2011). In a study of German women, multivariate analyses revealed that sexual satisfaction was predicted by PVI frequency and satisfaction from PVI, but not by frequency nor satisfaction from R. M. Costa (&) S. Brody School of Social Sciences, University of the West of Scotland, Paisley PA1 2BE, UK e-mail: rmscosta@gmail.com

The quality of social relationships in ravens

The quality of a social relationship represents the history of past social interactions between two individuals, from which the nature and outcome of future interactions can be predicted. Current theory predicts that relationship quality comprises three separate components, its value, compatibility and security. This study is the first to investigate the components of relationship quality in a large-brained bird. Following methods recently used to obtain quantitative measures of each relationship quality component in chimpanzees, Pan troglodytes, we entered data on seven behavioural variables from a group of 11 ravens, Corvus corax, into a principal components analysis. The characteristics of the extracted components matched those predicted for value, compatibility and security, and were labelled as such. When the effects of kinship and sex combination on each relationship quality component were analysed, we found that kin had more valuable relationships, whereas females had less secure and compatible relationships, although the effect of sex combination on compatibility only applied to nonkin. These patterns are consistent with what little knowledge we have of raven relationships from aviary studies and show that the components of relationship quality in ravens may indeed be analogous to those in chimpanzees.

The stability and change of trait emotional intelligence, conflict communication patterns, and relationship satisfaction: A one-year longitudinal study

We examined the stability and change of trait emotional intelligence (EI), conflict communication patterns and relationship satisfaction in cohabiting heterosexual couples over a 12-month period. Participants were 45 couples ( n = 90) who completed the TEIQue – Short Form (Petrides & Furnham, 2006), the Communication Patterns Questionnaire (Christensen & Sullaway, 1984), and the Perceived Relationship Quality Components (PRQC) Inventory (Fletcher, Simpson, & Thomas, 2000). We examined both actor and partner effects. We found that, for individuals, the effect of self-rated EI on their own satisfaction was stable over the 12-month period and was not related to changes in satisfaction over time. We also found that women’s reports of avoidance and withholding predicted declines in both men’s and women’s satisfaction over time. We discuss the potential importance of EI and communication patterns in promoting relationship satisfaction.

The Impact of Value Congruence on Consumer-Service Brand Relationships

By integrating results from literature pertaining to social psychology, organizational behavior, and relationship marketing, the authors develop and test a model that explains how value congruence affects the key components of consumer-brand relationship quality and outcomes, including satisfaction, trust, affective commitment, and loyalty. Using structural equation modeling, they test the model with data from a survey of 1,037 consumers of clothing stores and banks in the Netherlands. The results show that value congruence has significant direct, positive effects on satisfaction, trust, affective commitment, and loyalty. Furthermore, value congruence indirectly influences loyalty through satisfaction, trust, and affective commitment. The authors discuss the implications of these findings for marketing theory and practice.

Components of Relationship Quality in Chimpanzees

AbstractA novel approach to studying social relationships in captive adult chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes) was taken by using principal components analysis (PCA) to extract three key components of relationship quality from nine behavioural variables. Based on the loadings of the behavioural variables, the components appeared to match previously hypothesized critical aspects of social relationships and were therefore labelled Value, Compatibility and Security. The effects of kinship, sex combination, age difference and time spent together on each of the relationship quality components were analysed. As expected, kin were found to have more valuable, compatible and secure relationships than non‐kin. Female–female dyads were found to be more compatible than male–male or mixed‐sex dyads, whereas the latter were found to be most secure. Partners of a similar age were found to have more secure and more valuable relationships than those with a larger age gap. Individuals that were together in the group for longer were more valuable and more compatible, but their relationships were found to be less secure than individuals that were together in the group for a shorter time. Although some of the results may be unexpected based on chimpanzee socio‐ecology, they fit well overall with the history and social dynamics of the study group. The methods used confer a significant advantage in producing quantitative composite measures of each component of relationship quality, obtained in an objective manner. These findings therefore promote the use of such measures in future studies requiring an assessment of the qualities of dyadic social relationships.

Trait emotional intelligence, conflict communication patterns, and relationship satisfaction

We examined trait emotional intelligence (EI), conflict communication patterns, and relationship satisfaction in cohabiting heterosexual couples. Participants were 82 couples ( N = 164) who completed the TEIQue – Short Form (Petrides & Furnham, 2006), the Communication Patterns Questionnaire (Christensen & Sullaway, 1984), and the Perceived Relationship Quality Components (PRQC) Inventory (Fletcher, Simpson, & Thomas, 2000). The most satisfied couples were those who did not avoid discussion of relationship problems and who rated their partners high in EI. Satisfied couples were more likely than dissatisfied couples to perceive themselves as having levels of EI similar to their partner. We also examined whether actor or partner effects, or a combination of the two, best predicted relationship satisfaction and found that actor variables were the only significant predictors. These results are discussed with reference to the importance of EI and communication patterns in relationship satisfaction.

Women's Relationship Quality is Associated with Specifically Penile-Vaginal Intercourse Orgasm and Frequency

A growing empirical literature demonstrates that the only sexual behavior consistently associated with indices of better physiological and psychological function is the one sexual behavior relevant to potential gene propagation. In the present study, 30 Portuguese women reported on their frequency of different sexual behaviors and corresponding orgasm rates and also completed the Perceived Relationship Quality Components (PRQC) Inventory. As hypothesized, frequency of penile-vaginal intercourse correlated positively with PRQC dimensions: Satisfaction, Intimacy, Trust, Passion, Love (all r ≥ .40) and Global Relationship Quality (r = .55). Noncoital sexual behaviors with a partner were uncorrelated with the PRQC dimensions. Masturbation frequency was inversely associated with Love (r = −.38). Penile-vaginal orgasmic frequency correlated positively with PRQC dimensions: Satisfaction, Intimacy, Passion, Love (all r ≥ .44) and Global Relationship Quality (r = .52). Penile-vaginal intercourse orgasmic consistency was inversely associated with masturbation frequency. Social desirability scores did not confound the associations. Results are discussed in terms of both evolutionary and psychoanalytic theories.

Relationship between partner’s comparative superiority, relationship behaviors, and relationship satisfaction in couples

Relationship satisfaction is one of the main determinants of the stability of couple relationships. The past two decades witnessed a growing number of studies of factors affecting relationship satisfaction in couples, including both behavioural aspects and subjective factors. However, the influence of various aspects of the experience of the previous relationship on relationship satisfaction in later relationships has been studied much less extensively. In particular, there have been no studies on how the perceived superiority of the current partner over the previous partner might affect relationship satisfaction in the current relationship. The purpose of the present study was to supplement the body of research with data on the relationship between partner’s comparative superiority, relationship behaviours, and relationship satisfaction in dating couples. Subjects in the present study were 51 heterosexual couple in a dating relationship. Age of the subjects ranged from 19 to 28 years. Couples were selected for this study under the condition that the present relationship was not the first experience of steady dating relationship for either of the partners. Subjects were given a battery of instruments, which included Perceived Relationship Quality Components scale (Fletcher et al., 2000) for measurement of relationship satisfaction, Partner’s Comparative Superiority scale constructed specifically for the present study, and a number of questions on frequency of various relationship behaviours, including sex, signs of attention given to and received from the partner, yelling by the partner or by the subject, not talking by the partner or to the partner and amount of time spent together with the partner. Correlation between relationship satisfaction and partner’s comparative superiority was strong and highly significant (r = 0.656, p &lt; 0.001). There were also significant positive correlations between relationship satisfaction and amount of time spent together with the partner (r = 0.275, p &lt; 0.01), number of signs of attention given to the partner (r = 0.220, p &lt; 0.05) and number of signs of attention received from the partner (r = 0.253, p &lt; 0.05). On the other hand, relationship satisfaction correlated negatively with such behavioural indicators of conflict as the frequency of yelling by the partner (r = –0.341, p &lt; 0.001), not talking by the partner (r = –0.197, p &lt; 0.05) and frequency of the subject yelling at the partner (r = –0.298, p &lt; 0.01). To assess the relative importance of partner’s comparative superiority and behavioural aspects of the relationship to relationship satisfaction, multiple regression analysis was conducted. The final regression equation indicated that only two variables – partner’s comparative superiority and the number of signs of attention given by the subject to the partner – made a significant unique contribution towards explaining the variance of relationship satisfaction. The two variables accounted for 45.6 per cent of the variance of relationship satisfaction, of which 42.5 per cent was accounted for by partner’s comparative superiority.

The Measurement of Perceived Relationship Quality Components: A Confirmatory Factor Analytic Approach

This research tested three models of how the relationship evaluation components of satisfaction, commitment, intimacy, trust, passion, and love are structured and cognitively represented. Participants in Study 1 rated their intimate relationships on six previously developed scales that measured each construct and on a new inventory—the Perceived Relationship Quality Components (PRQC) Inventory. As predicted, confirmatory factor analysis revealed that, for both sets of scales, the best-fitting model was one in which the appropriate items loaded reliably on the six first-order factors, which in turn loaded reliably on one second-order factor reflecting overall perceived relationship quality. These results were replicated on a different sample in Study 2 and across sex. Implications and advantages of the PRQC Inventory are discussed.