An actor-partner interdependence model of relational turbulence: Cognitions and emotions

We extend the relational turbulence model by applying an actor-partner interdependence model to people's experiences of cognitive and emotional turbulence. In the study, 135 dating couples reported on their relationship once per week for six consecutive weeks. People's appraisals of turmoil and feelings of negative emotion were predicted by (i) their own relational uncertainty, (ii) their partner's relational uncertainty, and (iii) their own experiences of a partner's interference. When partners reported more turmoil and negative emotion in one week, actors experienced more relational uncertainty and interference from partners in the following week. The findings illuminate the interdependence between dating partners' experiences of relational turbulence over time.