Comparing the Marital Problems of Spouses Who Met Online vs. Offline
- UNCG Author/Contributor (non-UNCG co-authors, if there are any, appear on document)
- Krystal I. Lamb (Creator)
- Institution
- The University of North Carolina at Greensboro (UNCG )
- Web Site: http://library.uncg.edu/
- Advisor
- Levi Baker
Abstract: Online dating has become a popular way for people to find potential romantic partners and even spouses. Previous research has shown that marriages that begin online are associated with greater satisfaction and less likely to end in separation or divorce compared to marriages that begin offline. Since marriages that begin online are associated with more satisfaction and less likely to end in separation or divorce, I set out to further this research by looking to see if marriages that begin online also have fewer problem areas in their marriages compared to marriages that begin offline. To test my predictions, I analyzed data from an archival dataset that had newlywed couples answer questionnaires over a two-year period. These questionnaires asked these participants to report how they currently feel about their marriage, as well as different topics that are a source of difficulty and/or disagreement in their marriage (i.e., problem areas). Because couples whose marriages begin online are more likely to practice self-disclosure and use more effective communication strategies such as validation, affection, and working towards their problems together, I expected to find that couples whose marriages begin online will have fewer problem areas compared to couples whose marriages begin offline. However, contrary to my predictions, whether or not couples met on an online dating platform predicted neither the trajectory of marital satisfaction nor trajectory of marital problems.
Comparing the Marital Problems of Spouses Who Met Online vs. Offline
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Created on 2/24/2021
Views: 191
Additional Information
- Publication
- Honors Project
- Language: English
- Date: 2021
- Keywords
- Online dating, marital satisfaction, marital problems, communication