Relationship quality and support for family policy during the COVID-19 pandemic

Objective: We examined how relationship satisfaction changed during the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, as well as how relationship satisfaction related to public policy support. Background: Conservation of resources (COR) theory suggests that societal-level stressors (such as a global pandemic) threaten familial and individual resources, straining couple relationships. Relationship satisfaction is in turn linked with important individual, familial, and societal outcomes, necessitating research on how COVID-19 impacted this facet of relationships. Method: Drawing from an international project on COVID-19 and family life, participants included 734 married and cohabiting American parents of children under 18 years of age. Results: Findings revealed relationship satisfaction declined moderately compared to retrospective reports of relationship satisfaction prior to the pandemic. This decline was more precipitous for White individuals, women, parents less involved in their children's lives, and those reporting higher levels of depressive symptoms. We also found that higher relationship satisfaction was associated with higher levels of support for family policy, particularly for men. At higher levels of relationship satisfaction, men and women had similarly high levels of support for family policy, while at lower levels, women's support for family policy was significantly higher. Conclusion: The COVID-19 pandemic likely amplified facets of social inequality, which is especially concerning when considering the large socioeconomic gaps prior to the pandemic. Implications: Therapists, researchers, and policy makers should examine how relationship satisfaction may have changed during the pandemic because relationship satisfaction is linked to child and adult well-being and relationship dissolution. Further, the link between relationship satisfaction and support for family policy deserves further scrutiny.