Official websites use. Share sensitive information only on official, secure websites. Corresponding author: Levi R. Contemporary perspectives on relationship commitment posit that intimates decide whether or not to maintain a relationship based on their commitment to that relationship, and that they base such commitment partially on their current satisfaction with that relationship. Nevertheless, given that ending a relationship requires knowing about both the current state of the relationship and the likely future state of the relationship, we propose that people base their commitment to a relationship more on their expected future satisfaction with the relationship than on their current satisfaction with that relationship.
Six studies provided evidence for these ideas. Study 1 demonstrated that expected satisfaction is shaped by not only current satisfaction but also several unique indicators of the likelihood of future satisfaction, including anticipated life events, plans to improve the relationship, and individual differences. These findings highlight not only the need to incorporate expected satisfaction into extent perspectives on commitment, but also the importance of expectations for decision-making processes more broadly.
One of the most important and challenging interpersonal decisions people face is whether to continue or dissolve a close relationship. Nevertheless, not all relationships are equally helpful in this regard. Thus, optimizing personal well-being often requires choosing whether or not to end a relationship. Existing theoretical perspectives e. Nevertheless, not all attempts to improve a relationship will be successful, and thus deciding whether or not to dissolve a relationship requires considering what the future of the relationship will be like.
For these reasons, we argue that intimates may base their commitment to a relationship on their expectations regarding the likelihood that they will be satisfied in the future rather than whether or not they are satisfied at the present; such expected satisfaction is likely based partially on current satisfaction but should also reflect additional factors relevant to the future. The remainder of this introduction is organized into four sections.
The first section briefly reviews theoretical and empirical work on relationships suggesting that intimates base their commitment to a relationship primarily on their current satisfaction with that relationship. The second section, in contrast, reviews theoretical and empirical challenges to this perspective that suggest that current satisfaction provides limited information on which to base relationship decisions and thus expected satisfaction serves as a more functional and proximal source of commitment.
