How Does Context Affect Intimate Relationships? Linking External Stress and Cognitive Processes within Marriage

Stressors external to the marriage frequently affect the way spouses evaluate their marital quality. To date, however,understanding of the interplay between external stress and internalrelationship processes has been limited in two ways. First,research has generally examined only the short-termconsequences of stress. Second, the mechanisms through whichexternal stressors influence relationship outcomes are unclear. Thisstudy addressed both limitations by examining relationshipcognitions that may mediate the effects of external stressthroughout 4 years of marriage. Analyses confirmed that stressfulexperiences were associated with the trajectory of marital quality overtime. Furthermore, both the content and the organization ofspouses’ specific relationship cognitions mediated this effect.That is, stress negatively influenced the nature of spouses’marital perceptions as well as the way spouses interpreted andprocessed those perceptions. These findings draw attention to waysthat the context of relationships shapes and constrainsrelationship processes.