We Can Make It Better: “We” Moderates the Relationship Between a Compromising Style in Interpersonal Conflict and Well-Being

Wei-Fang Lin, Yi-Cheng Lin (), Chin-Lan Huang and Lung Chen ()

Journal of Happiness Studies, 2016, vol. 17, issue 1, 57 pages

Abstract: Compromising is considered a useful strategy for solving interpersonal conflicts. However, compromising, which includes accommodating and sacrificing, may also lead to anxiety and depression. Therefore, the current study focused on a moderating mechanism between compromising and psychological health. Based on self-expansion theory, we hypothesized that the more individuals have a relational focus (i.e., a greater use of “we”) while narrating their compromising experiences, the better psychological health they will experience. Two hundred sixty-one participants from National Taiwan University (mean age = 20.40, 53.26 % male, 46.74 % female), wrote about an experience of conflict with their parents and completed a package of questionnaires to measure their conflict management style and psychological health. The frequency of the “we” pronoun was considered an index of relational focus. As predicted, the results from a hierarchical multiple regression demonstrated that “we” moderated the effect of compromising style on well-being. Specifically, the relationship between compromising and psychological well-being were strengthened for individuals who had more relational focus. Thus, although a compromising style helps solve interpersonal conflicts, it does not necessarily increase individuals’ well-being. How individuals anchor their experiences are more important. Copyright Springer Science+Business Media Dordrecht 2016

Keywords: Compromise; Conflict; Linguistic inquiry and word count (LIWC); Pronoun “we”; Self-expansion; Well-being (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2016
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DOI: 10.1007/s10902-014-9582-8

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