Annual of social work, Vol. 30 No. 1, 2023.
Original scientific paper
https://doi.org/10.3935/ljsr.v30i1.453
THE ROLE OF PSYCHOLOGICAL VIOLENCE IN PREDICTING RELATIONSHIP COMMITMENT AND STABILITY
Nika Sušac
orcid.org/0000-0002-8257-3472
; Department of Social Work, Faculty of Law, University of Zagreb, Zagreb, Croatia
Abstract
Relationship commitment is one of the key constructs in studies on relationship quality and stability. In this study, the Investment Model (Rusbult, 1980) was used as a theoretical basis, where commitment is emphasized as the central construct for relationship maintenance and endurance. The aim of the study was to examine the role of psychological violence in predicting commitment and perceived relationship stability within the aforementioned model. The participants were students of the University of Zagreb (N = 154), with female students (77.9%) being more represented in the sample. The obtained results confirmed the assumptions of the basic model and all regression analyses resulted in a high percentage of explained variance of the examined criteria. The frequency of experiencing psychological violence was a significant negative predictor of commitment and perceived relationship stability, and this relationship was only partially mediated by other examined constructs. Contrary to expectations, more frequent experiencing of psychological violence also had a direct contribution in predicting less perceived relationship stability. The paper discusses the meaning of individual mediation effects and their contribution to explaining the relationships between the investigated constructs. The implications for future studies and for potential practical application of the results are also indicated.
Keywords
psychological violence; commitment; stability; partner relationships; Investment model
Hrčak ID:
306605
URI
Publication date:
10.7.2023.
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