Attachment Style, Interpersonal Perception Accuracy, and Relationship Satisfaction in Dating Couples

This study investigated associations between attachment style, partner perception accuracy, and relationship satisfaction in a sample of 61 undergraduate dating couples. Each partner completed questionnaires assessing own attachment style, own feelings about the relationship, and perceptions of the partner’s feelings about the relationship. Results indicated that more avoidantly attached men and more anxiously attached individuals of both sexes reported lower relationship satisfaction. However, only anxiously attached men showed consistently lower accuracy in perceiving their partner’s feelings about the relationship. The lower satisfaction among anxiously attached men could be partially explained by their lower accuracy in perceiving their partner’s feelings of love, and this lower accuracy was not due to the partner’s self-reported level of communication. Implications of the results in terms of understanding how attachment style influences interpersonal communication and relationship quality are discussed.