Romantic Relationships and Socioeconomic Status as Independent Predictors of Health and Wellbeing: Evidence From the United States and Spain

Romantic relationships and socioeconomic resources are both well-established predictors of health and wellbeing, yet their effects have not often been examined simultaneously as primary predictors. This study investigated the relative contributions of relationship quality and socioeconomic status (SES) to life satisfaction, physical health, and mental health across two national contexts that differ in social structure and welfare systems. Demographically stratified national samples from the United States ( n = 1,004) and Spain ( n = 969) completed measures of relationship satisfaction, perceived partner responsiveness, and multiple SES indicators. Linear regression analyses showed that higher levels of relationship satisfaction and perceived partner responsiveness were robustly associated with greater life satisfaction, better physical health, and fewer mental health symptoms in both countries, even after accounting for SES. Subjective SES also predicted all outcomes in both countries, above and beyond the effects of relationship quality. However, objective SES indicators showed country-specific patterns: education consistently predicted outcomes in the U.S. but not in Spain, and income predicted some outcomes in the U.S., but effects were weaker and less consistent than for education. Together, these findings show that relationship quality is a robust predictor of health and wellbeing across contexts, whereas the impact of socioeconomic status seems to depend on the broader structural environments.