Solidarity in Couple Relationships – A Mixed Methods Approach

Abstract

<jats:title>Abstract</jats:title><jats:p>In family research, there have not yet been many attempts to grasp theoretically and empirically solidarity in couple relationships, a gap that this study addresses combining qualitative and quantitative strategies. One purpose of this article is to develop a theoretical framework to understand solidarity as an overarching structural element of cooperation in couples. We then propose, in the best possible way, a measurement of solidarity to be used in quantitative analysis. To this end, data from the German Family Panel (pairfam, waves 2008–2017) are used in a longitudinal design. We offer an empirical test of our measurement by employing autoregressive cross-lagged analyses with random intercepts (n = 2,588 couples) and establish the cause-and-effect relationship between solidarity and one important dimension of relationship quality, i. e. relationship satisfaction. The results of this analysis lend support to our assumption that couples cooperate on a basic rule of solidarity, having a unidirectional influence on relationship quality.</jats:p>

Gender-specific patterns and determinants of spillover between work and family: The role of partner support in dual-earner couples

“…Put differently, a lack of support or unhelpful support may result in increased levels of future stress and strain (Overall, Fletcher & Simpson 2010). Positive effects of supportive structures, therefore can be seen as a holistic concept (Adams, Golsch & Maiwald 2020).…”

“…Lundberg and Pollak (1996) emphasize the benefit of cooperative negotiations over non-cooperative behaviour in a couple relationship. Failure to establish a modus of cooperation can be seen as the failure of a couple relationship (Adams, Golsch & Maiwald 2020;Maiwald 2013). A general modus of cooperation can be considered an indirect effect of reliable support provision in couple relationships.…”