The Trajectory Of Marital Satisfaction Among Chinese Newlyweds: Intrapersonal, Interpersonal, And Stress Predictors

Research has shown that intrapersonal, interpersonal, and stress factors are associated with development in marital satisfaction. However, the unique contributions of early predictors and changes in these factors to the development of marital satisfaction have been overlooked. Based on data from 268 Chinese newlywed couples (M-age = 29.59. SD = 3.25 for husbands; M-age = 28.08. SD = 231 for wives), the current study used latent growth curve model to examine (a) the development of marital satisfaction and the unique contributions of the intrapersonal, interpersonal, and stress predictors to the developmental trajectories (i.e.. the initial level and change) of marital satisfaction; (b) whether the intrapersonal, interpersonal, and stress predictors develop over time; and (c) how trajectories of these predictor domains are associated with changes in marital satisfaction. The results indicated that interpersonal variables, rather than intrapersonal or stress predictors at baseline, were associated with both the initial levels of and changes in marital satisfaction; in contrast, only the changes in the stress levels were found to be related to changes in marital satisfaction. The theoretical implications and future directions for this research are discussed.