Is it okay to be not okay? The role of health and mental well-being in life satisfaction: Insights from romantic relationships

This study examines how health, depression, and relationship dynamics contribute to both relationship satisfaction and life satisfaction among couples, using data from 7213 German couples. The analyses show that the key predictors differ substantially between these two domains. For relationship satisfaction, intimacy and mutual partner satisfaction emerge as the strongest predictors. In contrast, life satisfaction is primarily shaped by personal health status and depressive symptoms, with relationship quality providing additional but less dominant effects. Importantly, partners' subjective evaluations of their relationship account for more variance in both outcomes than objective factors such as age, income, or health constraints. These findings challenge the view that individual characteristics alone determine well-being within couples and suggest that shared relational processes play a central role. The results highlight the need to consider dyadic dynamics when seeking to understand how couples maintain relationship and life satisfaction, particularly in the face of health-related and psychological challenges.