Women Are Happier With Their Relationship When The Man Has More Power, According To Research

Power dynamics play a significant role in romantic relationships, shaping their outcomes, including relationship quality, even if people don't want to admit it. Despite this, power may not be as critical in contemporary relationships as in the past due to evolving gender roles and societal expectations. A recent study investigates these dynamics by examining four power characteristics and their effects on relationship quality among 181 heterosexual couples. The results illustrate a balance of power with respect to personal sense of power, but an imbalance in positional power.

Women Are Happier with Their Relationship When the Man Has More Power

Personal sense of power and satisfaction with power emerged as critical predictors of both actors’ and partners’ relationship quality. Notably, positional power, the general power motive, and the balance of power did not significantly correlate with relationship quality. The findings suggest that subjective, experienced power is more relevant to relationship quality than objective, positional power. Additionally, the perceived personal level of power appears to matter more than the balance of power for relationship satisfaction. The research explores how power impacts romantic relationships between men and women, primarily focusing on two research questions: the balance (or imbalance) of power and its significance for relationship-related outcomes.

Regarding the first research question, a balance of power, based on personal sense of power, was observed in most couples. Partners reported having similar influence over decision-making, indicating that they felt equally empowered. This balance could be attributed to the idea that decisions aren't necessarily a zero-sum game; instead, each partner may seek influence in different areas of the relationship, creating a sense of equal power.

However, this balance of power did not extend to positional power, which refers to power derived from socioeconomic factors like education, occupation, and income. Despite societal strides towards gender equality, men reported significantly more positional power, echoing national statistics and studies on the gender pay gap. Interestingly, men were found to pursue power more than women, aligning with traditional gender roles.

The second research question examined how power perceptions affect relationship-related outcomes. Personal sense of power had positive correlations with the relationship quality (RQ) dimensions of Fascination, Engagement, Sexuality, Future, and Trust. This means individuals with a higher sense of power had a more positive overall evaluation of their romantic relationship.

Interestingly, many women were more satisfied when their partners felt in charge, aligning with traditional gender roles. Despite this, positional power did not significantly affect relationship-related outcomes. This suggests that financial resources might not influence relationship variables as much as the actual sense of power in the relationship.

"The higher a man’s experienced power, the higher a woman’s RQ [relationship quality]," the paper reads. "Apparently, many women were more satisfied with the relationship when the partner felt that he is in charge, which is in line with traditional gender roles. Future research could explore changes over time or differences in different parts of the population."

When people were satisfied with their level of power, their partners were also happier and tended to invest more in the relationship.

Moreover, satisfaction with power was linked to a personal sense of power and relationship quality. When individuals were satisfied with their decision-making ability, they were also satisfied with their overall relationship. Furthermore, when people were satisfied with their level of power, their partners were also happier and tended to invest more in the relationship.

As for the power motive, men reported more sexual fulfillment when women had a strong power motive, aligning with previous research. Yet, no significant associations were found between the balance of power and total relationship quality, challenging past research. This finding suggests that absolute power level might matter more for relationship quality than the balance of power. Despite the limitations of the research and the need for future studies to clarify these findings, it's clear that power plays a pivotal role in shaping the dynamics of romantic heterosexual relationships. Understanding these dynamics can contribute to better relationship outcomes, fostering stronger bonds between partners.

Behavioral and cognitive graduate student Alexander (@datepsych) shared the findings on Twitter, highlighting that objective power was not associated with relationship quality the way that perceived power was.

"This is one of the things that has filtered into our folk psychology that is probably wrong or at least not well supported: that 'power imbalances' in relationships are bad or result in worse outcomes," he tweets.

Many people in the replies pointed out that this explains why so few women "date down," so to speak. Relationships of the highest quality usually involve a man who has more power in the relationship than the woman, even if it is "experienced" power, so naturally women tend to show less interest in the types of men who don't exhibit any kind of authority in a romantic situation. The fact that women felt more satisfied with the relationship when the man felt like he was in charge disproves many of the feminist beliefs that equality is the best thing to have with a romantic partner. Actually, quite the opposite seems to be true.

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