Relationship satisfaction and The Big Five – Utilizing longitudinal data covering 9 years

Abstract

There is abundant evidence linking satisfaction in romantic relationships and the big five personality factors. It is important to distinguish between actor effects (i.e. influence of one’s own personality) and partner effects (i.e. influence of the partner’s personality). In this study, we utilized three cohorts (born 1991–1993, 1981–1983, and 1971–1973) from a longitudinal data set and estimated an Actor-Partner-Interdependence Model (APIM) to examine the association between personality and relationship satisfaction over a period of 9 years in romantic relationships involving both heterosexual partners (N = 972). Our findings revealed significant actor effects, but no partner effects. Specifically, long-lasting relationship satisfaction was found to be associated with lower levels of Neuroticism and higher levels of Conscientiousness. Apart from a negative correlation between Extraversion and relationship satisfaction in women, we did not find any differences between men and women. Over a longer time span the congruence between both persons plays a smaller role than previous studies have assumed. Our results emphasize the contribution of one’s own Conscientiousness and Neuroticism to the relationship satisfaction. This could be an important insight for the research into couples therapy or coaching in the context of personal development.