Development of relationship satisfaction across the life span: A systematic review and meta-analysis.
Level 3 - non-randomized controlled study
Systematic review and meta-analysis of observational cross-sectional and longitudinal cohort studies
PubMed 34928690 · doi:10.1037/bul0000342
What was done
A systematic review and meta-analysis of 165 independent samples comprising 165,039 participants was conducted to evaluate relationship satisfaction trajectories across age (mean ages 20 to 76 years) and relationship duration (3 months to 46 years). The authors evaluated cross-sectional mean levels using percent-of-maximum-possible (POMP) scores at baseline and longitudinal mean change per year in POMP scores, followed by moderator analyses.
What was found
Cross-sectional mean levels of relationship satisfaction decreased from age 20 to 40, hit a low point at age 40, increased until age 65, and plateaued in late adulthood. By relationship duration, satisfaction decreased over the first 10 years, reached a low point at 10 years, increased until 20 years, and then decreased again. Longitudinal change analyses showed satisfaction decreased within given relationships, with the steepest drops during young adulthood and early relationship years. Presence of children and specific satisfaction scales explained variance in mean levels, but findings were robust across birth cohort, sample type, country, ethnicity, gender, cohabitation, marital status, relationship transitions, and dyadic structure. Specific numerical effect sizes or confidence intervals were not reported in the abstract.
Why it matters
This synthesis provides comprehensive normative trajectory data indicating that relationship satisfaction follows a predictable developmental pattern across adulthood, heavily influenced by relationship duration and life stage.
Limits
Specific numeric estimates, standard errors, and confidence intervals are omitted from the abstract. Observational designs cannot definitively separate developmental aging effects from selective relationship dissolution (survivorship bias), and relationship satisfaction relies entirely on self-reported measures.