Relationship researchers often assume that satisfying relationships are healthy, but is this true? We examined whether different types of college dating relationships exist if we analyze elements of relationship health that included not only global relationship satisfaction, but patterns of communication, intimate partner violence, and positive and negative appraisals of one's partner. To do this, we used latent mixture modeling in a large sample of students in committed relationships (N = 1935). Three distinct types of committed relationships emerged: unhealthy and unsatisfying (N=477), healthy and satisfying (N=703), and a group we termed healthy and satisfying but unimpressed with their partner (N=755). To understand factors associated with being in these empirically derived groups, we used a combination of bootstrap sampling and automatic variable selection. Variables related with unhealthy and unsatisfying relationships included higher levels of anxious and avoidant attachment, sanctification, neuroticism and relationship length; and lower levels of dedication and sexual satisfaction. Variables related with healthy and satisfying relationships included higher levels of sexual satisfaction and lower levels of neuroticism and relationship length. Variables related with healthy and satisfied but unimpressed with their partner included lower levels of sanctification and nonexclusive relationships. These findings can aid in the conceptualization of why people stay in poor, unsatisfying relationships; what variables are related to healthy, satisfying relationships; and the difference in variables that lend to partner ambivalence in otherwise satisfying relationships.

abstract: Social media has been extensively researched, and its effects on well-being are well established. What is less studied, however, is how social media affects romantic relationships specifically. The few studies that have researched this have found mixed results. Some researchers have found social media to have a positive influence on relationship outcomes, while other have found social media to have a negative influence. In an attempt to reconcile these discrepancies, the current thesis study explored possible mediators between social media use and relationship health outcomes which, to my knowledge, has not been investigated in previous literature. Three moderators were explored: type of social media use (active use versus passive use), relationship-contingent self-esteem, and social comparison orientation. The baseline portion of the study had 547 individuals, recruited from Arizona State University’s SONA system as well as Amazon’s Mechanical Turk, who were in a romantic relationship for at least three months; the follow-up portion of the study had 181 participants. Results suggest that women who passively use social media exhibit a negative association between hours per day of social media use and baseline relationship satisfaction. Men who passively use social media exhibited a negative association between hours per day of social media use and follow-up relationship satisfaction, as well as a negative association with baseline commitment. While relationship-contingent self-esteem did not moderate the association between hours per day of social media use and relationship health, it was positively related to both men and women’s baseline relationship satisfaction and baseline commitment. Social comparison orientation (SCO) produced minimal results; women low on SCO exhibited a negative association between social media use and baseline relationship satisfaction, and higher SCO for men was associated with lower baseline commitment. Finally, exploratory post-hoc mediation models revealed that relationship comparisons mediated the association between hours per day of social media use and baseline relationship, as well as baseline commitment, for both men and women. Previous research supports the findings regarding passive social media use, while the findings regarding relationship-contingent self-esteem and relationship comparisons add new findings to the romantic relationship literature. / Dissertation/Thesis / Masters Thesis Psychology 2019

This study explored the relationship between patients' Health Locus of Control and their perceptions about the nature of their physician-patient relationship. The Locus of Control Scale and the Multidimensional Health Locus of Control Scale were implemented to measure the degree of personal control individuals attribute to their health. The Health Care Climate Questionnaire was used to measure the perceived physician support. The predicted result of the study was that patients who exhibit a higher degree of internal health locus of control would report better relationships with their physicians. This hypothesis was confirmed; there was a positive relationship between Internal health Locus of Control and the Health Care Climate questionnaire. Also, a significant relationship between the Powerful Others subscale of the health Locus of Control and perceived physician support was established.