Responding to problems: The roles of severity and barriers

In even the most satisfying relationships, couples face specific problems, varying in severity. Partners may strategically devote more time and effort to actively working on their most severe problems. However, actively addressing problems comes with risks, especially for partners who perceive barriers to leaving the relationship. Two studies of partners in seriously dating, cohabiting, and marital relationships examined responses to problems of varying degrees of severity and the role of barriers. In each, a positive association was found between the severity of problems and use of various strategies to address the problems. However, barriers to leaving the relationship moderated these associations, such that partners with more barriers to leaving were less likely to actively address their more severe problems.