Mental Health News
A team of researchers at the University of Texas, Austin, explored how stress affects romantic relationships. The study is published in the journal Social Psychological and Personality Science.
The Study
The researchers surveyed a daily diary study of 79 newlywed couples. They assessed factors like stressful life events, partner’s negative and positive behaviors, partner perception, etc.
The Findings
The results revealed that stress determines your perceptions of your romantic partner. People experiencing more stressful life events and/or daily hassles are more likely to monitor their partner’s negative relationship behaviors. Therefore, they are more prone to developing negative perceptions of their intimate partners.
The authors remarked: “We thought that stress might cloud those rose-colored glasses that happy couples generally have. Indeed, we found that individuals who were more stressed were more accurate in perceiving day-to-day changes in their partner’s negative behavior compared to individuals who were less stressed.”
To Know More You May Refer To
Neff, L. A., & Buck, A. A. (2022). When rose-colored glasses turn cloudy: Stressful life circumstances and perceptions of partner behavior in newlywed marriage. Social Psychological and Personality Science, 194855062211254. https://doi.org/10.1177/19485506221125411