Changes in size and interpretation of parameter estimates in within-person models in the presence of time-invariant and time-varying covariates

For several decades, cross-lagged panel models (CLPM) have been the dominant statistical model in relationship research for investigating reciprocal associations between two (or more) constructs over time. However, recent methodological research has questioned the frequent usage of the CLPM because, amongst other things, the model commingles within-person associations with between-person associations, while most developmental research questions pertain to within-person processes. Furthermore, the model presumes that there are no third variables that confound the relationships between the longitudinally assessed variables. Therefore, the usage of alternative models such as the Random-Intercept Cross-Lagged Panel Model (RI-CLPM) or the Latent Curve Model with Structured Residuals (LCM-SR) has been suggested. These models separate between-person from within-person variation and they also control for time constant covariates. However, there might also be third variables that are not stable but rather change across time and that can confound the relationships between the variables studied in these models. In the present article, we explain the differences between the two types of confounders and investigate how they affect the parameter estimates of within-person models such as the RI-CLPM and the LCM-SR

A developmental perspective on personality-relationship transactions: Evidence from three nationally representative samples

Objective: Throughout their lives, people experience different relationship events, such as beginning or dissolving a romantic relationship. Personality traits predict the occurrence of such relationship events (i.e., selection effects), and relationship events predict changes in personality traits (i.e., socialization effects), summarized as personality-relationship transactions. So far, evidence was partly inconsistent as to how personality traits and relationship events are linked with each other. In this article, we argue that unnoticed age differences might have led to these inconsistencies. To systematically test for age differences in transactions, we conceptualize relationship events in terms of gains and losses and apply a developmental perspective on transactions. Methods: Using longitudinal data from three nationally representative samples (SOEP, HILDA, Understanding Society), we computed event-focused latent growth models and summarized the results meta-analytically. Results: The findings indicated some transactions. Of these, selection effects were stronger than socialization effects, and effects of gain-based events were stronger than effects of loss-based events. We observed few interactions with age. Conclusion: Selection effects and, particularly, socialization effects, tend to be rare and fairly independent of age. We discuss a series of broader and narrower factors that may have an impact on the strength of transactions across adulthood

Personality Development in Emerging and Young Adulthood: A Study of Age Differences

Early adulthood is a time of substantial personality change characterized by large inter–individual diversity. To investigate the role of age in this diversity, the present study examined whether emerging adults differ from an older group of young adults in their Big Five personality development. By means of multi–group latent change modelling, two groups of 16– to 19–year–olds ( n = 3555) and 26– to 29–year–olds ( n = 2621) were tracked over the course of four years and compared regarding four aspects of personality change: mean–level change, rank–order change, inter–individual differences in change, and profile change. In addition, age–differential socialization effects associated with six first–time life events were investigated. Analyses revealed substantial age differences in all four aspects of change. As expected, emerging adults showed greater change and diversity in change than young adults. However, the six life events had no age–differential impact on change in single traits and Big Five profiles. Overall, the results indicate that age differences should be considered even in specific life stages to advance the understanding of personality development

Loneliness in (inter)action: Behavioral correlates of loneliness in friendship interactions

Previous studies have found that loneliness of one person can be judged quite accurately by a close friend or partner. Yet, it is unclear whether there are specific behavioral cues the other-ratings are based on. In the present study, 54 female friendship dyads were videotaped during a guided conversation and behavioral cuesl were coded using the SPAFF coding system. The results indicated that loneliness was negatively associated with one's own and the friend's overall friendship satisfaction and their satisfaction with the interaction. However, with the exception of an inconsistent mediation effect found for sadness, none of the coded behavioral cues were found to mediate the association between loneliness and interaction quality. Nevertheless, the results of the present study may help to understand why it is so difficult to identify people at risk for experiencing loneliness and draws attention to other processes through which loneliness may become visible to others

Personality and social relationships: As thick as thieves

Across their entire life span, individuals are surrounded by others and embedded in complex and highly dynamic networks of social relationships. Many aspects of these relationships are at least partially influenced by personality characteristics, which are in turn likewise influenced by aspects of social relationships. In the present chapter, we discuss the interplay between personality and social relationships and their relevance for a variety of health-related aspects exemplarily for partner relationships and friendships. Specifically, we discuss the role of personality traits in selecting and maintaining partners and friends and how these relationships contribute to the development of personality traits. Furthermore, we review findings on how life events shape and are shaped by the interplay between personality traits and social relationships. We conclude that understanding the life span dynamic interplay between personality, social relationships, and life events is fundamental to examine and understand interindividual differences in health

How (Not) to Measure Loneliness: A Review of the Eight Most Commonly Used Scales

Loneliness affects well-being and has long-term negative impacts on physical and mental health, educational outcomes, and employability. Because of those current and long-term impacts, loneliness is a significant issue for which we need reliable and appropriate measurement scales. In the current paper, psychometric properties of the eight most commonly used loneliness scales are reviewed both descriptively and meta-analytically. Results suggest that for many of the scales, the psychometric properties are promising. However, for some psychometric features, especially test-retest reliability and measurement invariance, evidence is rather scarce. Most striking, however, is the fact that all of the scales included items that do not measure loneliness. Surprisingly, for many (sub)scales, this was even the case for about half of the items. Because our measures are the foundation of our research work, it is crucial to improve the way loneliness is being measured

Women and Men are the Barometers of Relationships: Testing the Predictive Power of Women’s and Men’s Relationship Satisfaction

There is a longstanding belief in relationship science and popular opinion that women are the barometers in mixed-gender relationships such that their perceptions about the partnership carry more weight than men's in predicting future relationship satisfaction, but this idea has yet to be rigorously tested. We analyze data from two studies to test within-person links between men's and women's relationship satisfaction on their own and their partner's next-day and next-year satisfaction. Study 1 combined nine daily diary datasets from Canada and the United States with 901 mixed-gender couples who provided 29,541 daily reports of relationship satisfaction. Study 2 analyzed five annual waves of data from the German Family Panel (pairfam) that surveyed 3,405 mixed-gender couples who provided 21,115 relationship satisfaction reports. Latent curve models with structured residuals (LCM-SR) revealed that in both studies, men's and women's relationship satisfaction significantly predicted their own and their partner's relationship satisfaction, with no gender differences in the magnitude of these effects. Results underscore the interdependence of romantic partners' satisfaction and indicate that both men and women jointly shape romantic relationship satisfaction

Within-Couple Associations Between Communication and Relationship Satisfaction Over Time

Relationship science contends that the quality of couples' communication predicts relationship satisfaction over time. Most studies testing these links have examined between-person associations, yet couple dynamics are also theorized at the within-person level: For a given couple, worsened communication is presumed to predict deteriorations in future relationship satisfaction. We examined within-couple associations between satisfaction and communication in three longitudinal studies. Across studies, there were some lagged within-person links between deviations in negative communication to future changes in satisfaction (and vice versa). But the most robust finding was for concurrent within-person associations between negative communication and satisfaction: At times when couples experienced less negative communication than usual, they were also more satisfied with their relationship than was typical. Positive communication was rarely associated with relationship satisfaction at the within-person level. These findings indicate that within-person changes in negative communication primarily covary with, rather than predict, relationship satisfaction