Optimism, pessimism and support in older couples: A longitudinal study

Examining Intra- and Inter-Personal Health Effects of Optimism and Pessimism: The Role of Subjective Well-Being in Romantic Couples

Recent meta-analytic research suggests that the absence of pessimism could be a stronger predictor of physical health than the presence of optimism (Scheier et al., 2021a). The present study examined the role of subjective well-being in the effects of optimism and pessimism on physical health in romantic couples. It was hypothesized that pessimism would be more strongly associated with both well-being and health than optimism, intra- and inter-personally. Subjective well-being was also expected to explain variance in the associations between optimism, pessimism, and health. A baseline sample of 153 opposite-sex couples completed various measures of subjective well-being (e.g., life satisfaction, positive and negative affect, and depressive symptoms) and physical health (e.g., subjective health, sleep efficiency, physical symptoms, cold symptoms, and chronic illness). Results of actor-partner interdependence models showed that the absence of pessimism, but not the presence of optimism, was associated with better physical health at baseline and over time. Pessimism was also a stronger predictor than optimism of baseline levels in some indicators of subjective well-being. These effects were obtained intra- and inter-personally. Finally, subjective well-being explained variance in some of the effects of pessimism on levels of physical health. Implications for theory, research, and practice are discussed.