Abstract
Relational cultures involve unique relational activities and identities that manifest within symbolic practices (Bruess & Pearson, Citation1993). The association between rituals, privacy disclosure, and relational satisfaction were examined. Both time spent together and privacy disclosure affect romantic couples' perceptions of closeness and relational intimacy (Emmers-Sommer, Citation2004) and certain rituals foster the ongoing nature of the relationship (Bruess & Pearson, Citation1997). In this study, individuals involved in romantic relationships (n = 359) participated in an online survey. Couple-time rituals and idiosyncratic rituals accounted for a significant portion of the variance in romantic partners' disclosure. Relational satisfaction varied as a function of couple-time rituals, idiosyncratic rituals, and internal privacy orientation. Findings of this study illuminate the role of time spent and secrets shared in romantic relationships.
Notes
*p < .01.
*p < .001.
*p < .001.