Testing a Dyadic Model of Romantic Jealousy, Reassurance Seeking, Partner Monitoring, and Relationship Instability
Keywords:
Romantic jealousy, reassurance seeking, partner monitoring, relationship instability, Actor–Partner Interdependence Model, dyadic analysis, attachment insecurity, romantic relationships, electronic partner surveillanceAbstract
The present study aimed to test a dyadic model examining the direct and indirect associations among romantic jealousy, reassurance seeking, partner monitoring, and relationship instability by simultaneously evaluating actor and partner effects within romantic couples. This cross-sectional correlational study was conducted among 412 romantic couples (N = 824 individuals) residing in the United States. Participants were recruited through online platforms, community organizations, and university participant pools and were required to be at least 18 years old and involved in a committed romantic relationship for a minimum of six months. Data were collected using the Multidimensional Jealousy Scale, Reassurance-Seeking Scale, Partner Monitoring Scale, and Marital Instability Index. Descriptive statistics, reliability analyses, and Pearson correlations were performed using SPSS version 29. Dyadic relationships among variables were examined through the Actor–Partner Interdependence Model (APIM) within a structural equation modeling framework using AMOS version 29. Model fit was evaluated using χ²/df, CFI, TLI, RMSEA, and SRMR indices, and indirect effects were tested through bootstrapping procedures with 5,000 resamples. Results indicated significant positive associations among romantic jealousy, reassurance seeking, partner monitoring, and relationship instability (all p < .001). The proposed dyadic structural model demonstrated excellent fit to the data (χ²/df = 2.24, CFI = .967, TLI = .961, RMSEA = .039, SRMR = .041). Actor effects revealed that romantic jealousy significantly predicted reassurance seeking (β = .53, p < .001), partner monitoring (β = .49, p < .001), and relationship instability (β = .17, p < .001). Reassurance seeking (β = .21, p < .001) and partner monitoring (β = .42, p < .001) significantly predicted relationship instability. Significant partner effects were also observed, indicating that one partner’s jealousy predicted the other partner’s monitoring behaviors (β = .22, p < .001) and relationship instability (β = .18, p = .001), while partner monitoring predicted the partner’s instability (β = .25, p < .001). Bootstrapping analyses confirmed significant indirect effects of jealousy on relationship instability through reassurance seeking (β = .11, p < .001) and partner monitoring (β = .21, p < .001). The findings support a comprehensive dyadic model in which romantic jealousy contributes to relationship instability both directly and indirectly through reassurance-seeking and partner-monitoring behaviors. The results highlight the importance of considering emotional insecurity as an interpersonal process that affects both members of a romantic dyad. Reassurance seeking and monitoring behaviors appear to function as key mechanisms through which jealousy undermines relationship stability. These findings underscore the value of dyadic perspectives in relationship research and suggest that interventions targeting insecurity, excessive reassurance seeking, and partner surveillance may enhance relationship functioning and long-term stability.
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Copyright (c) 2026 Nicole Lagersted-Olsen (Author); Mehdi Rostami; Farzaneh Mardani (Author); Laura Howe ; Mireille Khalil (Author)
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.
