The relationship of flexibility in personal attitudes, communication patterns, and gender roles to couple satisfaction and relationship dynamics

Drawing from social psychology and personality research on traits and attitudes, family therapy research on communication, and feminist research on gendered roles and power distribution, this research examined the relative importance of (a) flexibility (personal level of realization or ego integration), (b) personal attitudes of authoritarianism and attributional style, (c) perception of communication and conflict resolution quality of married couples, and (d) egalitarianism in role perceptions and power allocation in the family on marital satisfaction and on particular dynamics of the marital relationship. The influence of the gender of the respondent was investigated.; Fifty Caucasians, married for at least a year, completed a composite questionnaire battery of five self-report instruments via the Internet.; Correlational results showed that satisfied husbands tend to have growth-promoting relationships and higher flexibility scores. They are not authoritarian and believe that their relationships can improve. They tend not to blame their wives for relationship problems, and to have better communication skills. They are egalitarian and attempt to divide household tasks fairly. In contrast, satisfied wives differ from satisfied husbands in that they are more authoritarian, possibly because of higher achievement motivation scores, and tend not to blame themselves for problems. They are also egalitarian but may not always believe power is equally allocated in their relationships. Feedback solicited from participants regarding data collection via the Internet, and advantages and problems of Internet research are discussed.; More integrative and rigorous models, based on multidisciplinary, multivariate research projects are proposed for marital research. Greater attention to gender differences in marital research is also needed.