Prior research has indicated that the people one loves the most, such as their romantic partners, ironically, are also the people toward whom they often direct destructive behaviors in times of conflict, and such destructive responses become one of the most challenging relationship problems. Identifying the conditions that promote destructive (vs. constructive) conflict-resolution strategies is a crucial gap requiring study to help individuals build healthier and happier relationships. Across three studies (total N = 728), we examined whether (a) power is related to direct destructive (vs. constructive) responses during romantic conflicts; (b) this effect was moderated by the seriousness of the conflict and the relationship’s inclusiveness. In Study 1, participants involved in romantic relationships completed scales assessing interpersonal power, the conflict’s seriousness, their relationship’s inclusiveness, and conflict-resolution responses. In Studies 2-3, the participants were randomly assigned to complete an essay in which the conflict’s seriousness and power were experimentally manipulated. Findings from hierarchical regression analyses consistently showed that power led to destructive (and lower constructive) responses. However, this only occurred when the participants faced severe conflicts and their partner was not central to their self-concept. An internal meta-analysis of the studies confirmed the reliability and significance of these relationships; |r’s| =.13-37. Together, these results support the proposition that power asymmetries can threaten relationships by driving destructive responses during romantic conflicts, and untangle the conditions under which this happens. The conflict’s seriousness and the inclusiveness of the relationship may be considered to provide skills that help individuals navigate their relationships’ life challenges.

中文翻译：

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阐明在浪漫冲突中感知权力对破坏性反应的影响

先前的研究表明，具有讽刺意味的是，一个人最爱的人，例如他们的浪漫伴侣，也是他们在冲突时经常对他们进行破坏性行为的人，而这种破坏性反应成为最具挑战性的关系问题之一。确定促进破坏性（与建设性）冲突解决策略的条件是一个关键的差距，需要研究以帮助个人建立更健康和更​​快乐的关系。跨越三项研究（共ñ= 728），我们检查了（a）权力是否与浪漫冲突期间的直接破坏性（与建设性）反应有关；(b) 这种影响因冲突的严重性和关系的包容性而有所缓和。在研究 1 中，参与浪漫关系的参与者完成了评估人际权力、冲突的严重性、他们的关系的包容性和解决冲突的反应的量表。在研究 2-3 中，参与者被随机分配完成一篇文章，其中冲突的严重性和权力是通过实验操纵的。分层回归分析的结果一致表明，权力会导致破坏性（和较低的建设性）反应。然而，这只发生在参与者面临严重冲突并且他们的伴侣不是他们自我概念的核心时。对研究的内部荟萃分析证实了这些关系的可靠性和重要性；|r的| =.13-37。总之，这些结果支持了这样一个命题，即权力不对称可以通过在浪漫冲突中引发破坏性反应来威胁关系，并解开这种情况发生的条件。冲突的严重性和关系的包容性可以被认为提供了帮助个人应对关系中的生活挑战的技能。