Zadowolenie ze związku a długość trwania związku, zgodność opinii partnerów na temat stereotypowej roli kobiety w związku i jakość komunikacji

Duration of relationship, endorsement of partners’ opinions concerning stereotypical role of woman in relationship and quality of communication as determinants of satisfaction with a relationshipThe aim of the research was to determine whether relational satisfaction is dependent on the type of relation (engagement, marriage relations of different duration: up to three years and over ten years), the quality of communication between partners, and the level of the endorsement of partners’ opinions concerning the stereotypical woman’s role in a close relationship. Two hundred sixteen engaged and married couples took part in the research. Seventy two couples were engaged, seventy two couples were married and the duration of the marriage did not exceed 3 years, and seventy two couples were married for a period longer than 10 years. Participants completed The Questionnaire of Marriage Communication (Kaźmierczak, Plopa, 2005), the level of endorsement of the partners’ opinions concerning stereotypical woman’s role in a close relationship and relational satisfaction were also measured. The results show higher relational satisfaction of participants engaged. Moreover, it was observed that the longer the relation, the lower the assessment of relational satisfaction, and the worse the quality of communication. The important factors determining relational satisfaction are both the quality of communication and the level of endorsement of partners’ opinions concerning stereotypical feminine role in a relationship. Obtained results were analysed in the light of modern theories of relations and gender role