Romantic relationship dissatisfaction and depression mediated by satisfaction of basic psychological needs

• Main Author: Tanaka, Erika A.
• Format: text
• Language: English
• Published: Animo Repository 2017
• Subjects: Interpersonal relations; Intimacy (Psychology)
• Online Access: https://animorepository.dlsu.edu.ph/etd_masteral/5403
• Institution: De La Salle University

The study was conducted to investigate the relationship between romantic relationship dissatisfaction and depressive symptoms by determining whether the satisfaction of basic psychological needs mediated the relationship. Participants were emerging adults consisting of 281 males (n = 132) and females (n = 149) aged 18 to 29 years old who were unmarried and involved in romantic relationships. A simple mediation model was tested via the PROCESS macro by performing bootstrapping (10,000) and multiple regression analysis. The current study found that satisfaction of basic psychological needs mediated the relationship between romantic relationship dissatisfaction and depressive symptoms. Results implied that emerging adults experienced more depressive symptoms when they felt dissatisfied with their romantic relationships because their needs for autonomy, relatedness, and competence were not satisfied within the relationship. Furthermore, the relationship between romantic relationship dissatisfaction and depressive symptoms remained highly significant even after controlling for the satisfaction of basic psychological needs. Overall, these results highlight the importance of satisfying basic psychological needs in romantic relationships and not just in general.