The Role of Dyadic Coping in Relationship Satisfaction Among Couples Facing Cancer: A Meta-Analytic Actor-Partner Interdependence Approach

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Objectives To evaluate the actor and partner effects of dyadic coping on relationship satisfaction and quality of life (QoL) in patients with cancer and their caregiving partners. Methods Four English-language and three Chinese-language databases were systematically searched for cross-sectional or longitudinal studies from inception to February 1, 2026. A meta-analytic Actor-Partner Interdependence Model using two-stage structural equation modeling was applied to synthesize correlation matrices and estimate actor and partner effects. WebMASEM was used to examine associations between dyadic coping and relationship satisfaction or QoL. Results Twelve studies comprising 2,859 cancer-affected dyads were included. All pooled correlations between dyadic coping and relationship satisfaction or QoL were statistically significant. Actor effects of dyadic coping on relationship satisfaction and QoL were significant for patients and caregiving partners. Among partner effects, the effect of caregiving partners’ dyadic coping on patients’ QoL was the only one to reach statistical significance. Conclusions Dyadic coping demonstrated significant actor effects on relationship satisfaction and QoL for patients with cancer and caregiving partners. The effect of caregiving partners’ dyadic coping on patients’ QoL was the only partner effect to reach statistical significance. Implications for Nursing Practice These findings provide descriptive evidence indicating that dyadic coping in couples facing cancer is predominantly associated with an individual’s own outcomes. Although consistent with the Systemic-Transactional Model, these cross-sectional associations do not support causal inferences regarding intervention mechanisms. Longitudinal dyadic designs are required to evaluate whether these association patterns persist over time and to test moderators including cancer stage, cultural context, and caregiver burden.