In the Eye of the Beholder: Perceptions of Compensation Mediate the Effects of Attachment Style and Transgression Severity on Relationship Satisfaction

A considerable amount of research has been undertaken in the investigation of processes that determine people’s satisfaction with their interpersonal and romantic relationships. The current research was conducted in order to examine the role of a romantic partner’s compensatory behaviors in influencing relationship satisfaction as well as examine the role of attachment style in moderating these effects. Compensatory behaviors were conceptualized as acts that are intended to make-up for transgressions or negative events that occur between relationship partners. The primary hypothesis investigated in this study contended that attachment style would predict ratings of transgression severity which would, in turn, determine the perceptions of how well a compensatory behavior made up for that transgression. The perception of compensation adequacy, then, would ultimately mediate the effects of a transgression on relationship satisfaction. A series of hierarchical multiple regression were conducted in order to investigate the relationships among the attachment styles and ratings of transgression severity, perceptions of compensation, and satisfaction.

Grantor dc:publisher

Wake Forest University

Year dc:date.issued

2009

Author dc:creator

• Leary, Kevin

• attachment

Language dc:language.iso

en_US

Handle dc:identifier.uri

http://hdl.handle.net/10339/14752

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:wakespace.lib.wfu.edu:10339/14752