Marital satisfaction is among the strongest correlates of overall life satisfaction, whereas marital dissatisfaction is associated with a variety of physical and psychological difficulties. Although a relatively large body of research has described several interpersonal processes associated with marital satisfaction, a systematic theoretical and measurement model for conceptualizing and measuring adaptive interpersonal processes as they naturally unfold remains elusive. The primary aim of this study was to test the usefulness of moment-to-moment measurement of dominance and warmth, grounded in the Interpersonal Circumplex (IPC) as a theoretical and measurement model, to evaluate how ongoing adaptive processes relate to marital satisfaction (aim 1) and personality traits (aim 2). To do this, I used the interpersonal joystick method to code moment-to-moment interpersonal behavior displayed by husbands and wives (n = 135 dyads) across four discussion tasks (plan a vacation, best things in relationship, husbands’ relationship conflict, wives’ relationship conflict), and used Actor-Partner Interdependence Modeling (APIM) to examine individual and relational associations between husbands’ and wives’ observed behaviors across tasks and their self-reported marital satisfaction and personality characteristics. I also tested associations between dyadic patterns such as behavioral correspondence versus reciprocity and husbands’ and wives’ marital satisfaction. Results revealed that wives’ warmth was a consistent and moderate predictor of both partners’ marital satisfaction. Husbands’ warmth and dominance generally showed small effects in predicting his satisfaction, but not his wives. Both partners tended to be most satisfied when moment-to-moment dominance reciprocity was high, although models examining interactions between individual warmth, dyadic dominance reciprocity, and marital satisfaction generally indicated that high dominance reciprocity was particularly associated with satisfaction when wives were warm, but not when wives were cold. In general, results examining personality traits revealed that husbands’ negative emotionality and personality problems were associated with higher levels of coldness in both spouses, whereas wives’ wellbeing tended to be associated with higher levels of warmth in both spouses. The data obtained using this method also provide promising avenues for detailing how negative spousal patterns, such as demand-withdraw and negative-reciprocity, unfold between partners from one moment to the next. These and other results highlight the value of using the IPC as a theoretical and measurement model for understanding associations between moment-to-moment personality processes and relationship satisfaction.
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