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Updated: Jul 28, 2025

The Social Dimension of Stress: Experimental Manipulations of Social Support and Social Identity in the Trier Social Stress Test
Published on: November 19, 2015
Bidirectional or unidirectional? Longitudinal associations between external stressors, perceived spousal support, and
Qingyin Li1, Mengyu Xun1, Ziyuan Chen1
1Institute of Developmental Psychology, Beijing Normal University, Beijing, China.
None:
Based on three annual waves of data from 268 Chinese newlyweds (Mage = 29.59, SD = 3.25 for husbands; Mage = 28.08, SD = 2.51 for wives), the present study examined the bidirectional associations between external stressors, perceived spousal support, and marital instability by using a three-wave, cross-lagged approach. Results indicated bidirectional associations between external stressors and marital instability, and a unidirectional association linking marital instability to perceived spousal support. Additionally, external stressors at Wave 2 mediated the association between external stressors at Wave 1 and marital instability at Wave 3. Taken together, the present study contributes to an emerging body of research aimed at clarifying: (a) the directionality of the associations between external stressors, perceived spousal support, and marital instability; (b) how external stressors cumulatively affect the development of marital instability. Our study extends the Vulnerability-Stress-Adaptation (VSA) model and has developmental implications for promoting marital relationships in non-Western couples.
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