Clear associations exist between the intersections of socioeconomic factors,
relationship processes, and relationship outcomes. Though romantic relationships are
predictive of positive outcomes across multiple life domains (i.e., mental health, physical
health, financial health, relational health), maintaining a satisfying romantic relationship
can be challenging for partners of low-income statuses given systemically induced
stressors. Not only is this population growing, but these families continue to navigate
economic, health, and intervention disparities. Previous relationship intervention and
prevention efforts have largely produced little-to-no sustainable gains for couples of lowincome
statuses, despite the need and potential benefits of services for this population.
Scholars posit that the ineffectiveness of these interventions is due, in part, to the lack of
client-driven and tailored interventions, as previous initiatives were directly transferred
from middle- and higher-income participants.
Building a strong foundation of basic science is essential for working towards
accessible, sustainable, and effective evidence-based interventions for couples of low income
statuses. In addition, the area of relationship maintenance continues to be integral
to relational satisfaction and commitment; however, this area is understudied in terms of
how maintenance associates with relationship outcomes across different levels of
socioeconomic factors. As such, the aims of this dissertation were two-fold: 1) Investigate the longitudinal associations between relationship maintenance behaviors,
socioeconomic factors, and relationship satisfaction; 2) Explore latent profiles of dyadic
maintenance behavior use and their associations with socioeconomic factors, relationship
satisfaction, and commitment using actor and partner data.
Data were drawn from the German Family Panel Analysis of Intimate
Relationships and Family Dynamics (pairfam). For Aim 1, associations between
maintenance use, SES variables, and relationship outcomes were assessed across five
waves (2009-2019; N = 1,064) and were analyzed using latent growth curve analyses
with time-varying and time invariant covariates. Results showed that maintenance use
strongly predicted relationship outcomes at the onset, and that these behaviors continued
to be integral to relationship satisfaction and commitment over time. In terms of how SES
variables influenced these associations, results showed that perceived economic
deprivation negatively influences relationship maintenance and outcomes across income
groups. These results not only provide insight into the long-term effects of relationship
maintenance, but also underscore how perceptions of economic deprivation, impacts
relationship processes and outcomes.
For Aim 2, dyadic typologies (N = 2,329 couples) of relationship maintenance
utilization were explored using latent profile analysis (LPA) within Wave 11 of pairfam
(2019). The LPA resulted in six unique profiles of couple maintenance. Three dyads were
similar in their maintenance use, or lack thereof, while the three remaining dyads
displayed complementary approaches to maintenance. Contrary to previous relationship
education initiatives, these results underscore the need for tailored interventions, as couples clearly organize differently in terms of relational processes. Furthermore, there
were significant mean differences between profiles, for PED, and relationship outcomes.
That is, profiles with higher PED displayed less maintenance, higher withdrawal, and
lower relationship satisfaction and commitment than profiles with less PED. These results
provide further evidence that economic factors influence how partners maintain their
relationships, which provided further support for the need for evidence-based couple and
family interventions that account for varying socioeconomic factors facing couples.
Taken together, these results indicate that maintenance behaviors initially and overtime
are integral to relationship satisfaction and commitment, and that partners do not
maintain their relationships in the same way. Finally, perceived economic deprivation
directly decreases relationship outcomes and maintenance use.