abstract: Romantic relationships are often viewed as an important, meaningful part of a person's life. Most romantic relationships do not last forever. Research regarding romantic relationship satisfaction and quality have thus grown. The purpose of this study was to determine whether individuals who train for endurance events such as running, cycling, or triathlons with their romantic partner have greater relationship satisfaction and quality than do individuals who do not train with their romantic partner. Participants, 54 males and 60 females whose mean age was 33.4, completed a demographic questionnaire, the Quality of Relationships Inventory (QRI), the Perceived Relationship Quality Component (PRQC), the Relationship Assessment Scale (RAS), and the Revised Dyadic Adjustment Scale (RDAS). Of these 114 participants, 52 trained with their romantic partner. A multivariate analysis of variance (MANOVA) revealed that individuals who trained with their romantic partner reported higher relationship satisfaction and quality compared to those that did not train for an endurance event with their romantic partner. There were no statistically significant differences in relationship satisfaction or relationship quality between men and women or between married individuals and dating individuals. These findings suggest that couples may benefit from engaging in shared activities. / Dissertation/Thesis / Masters Thesis Counseling 2014

Pets are a common aspect of life for many Americans. In 2012, 36.5% of American household owned dogs and 30.4% owned cats (American Veterinary Medical Foundation, 2012). The purpose on this study was to explore the influence of dog ownership on romantic relationships. Specifically, this thesis investigates how dog ownership acts as a catalyst of relational maintenance and conflict behavior in interactions about the couple's dog. No prior research has been conducted on the role dogs' play in enacting relational maintenance or conflict in romantic relationships, so it is unclear if there is an influence to the these behaviors. This study asks how dog ownership might act as a centripetal force pulling the relationship together (e.g. relational maintenance) and/or as a centrifugal force pushing the partners apart (e.g. conflict). A total of 379 participants were recruited through social media to complete a short online survey. The survey asked questions on the romantic relationship, dog ownership, conflict regarding the dog, relational maintenance activities regarding the dog, and demographics. The majority of participants reported engaging in 8 of the 24 relational maintenance activities "often" or "always" and 3 of the 30 conflict topics occurred at least one or more times. Satisfaction with the romantic relationship associated positively with partial weak and negligible correlations to the relational maintenance activities and one negligible association with a conflict topic. A thematic analysis provides details on the short answers participants provided. The results shows that dogs do provide couples opportunities for relational maintenance but also are the source of conflict. This research is the start to understanding the role of dog ownership within romantic relationship. While each couple and dog may produce different influences on the relationship, this study is the start for the investigation and provides guidance for future research.