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The present study provides support for the hypothesis that similarities and differences in cognitive style could mediate the success of a marital relationship. Forty-five married couples, whose scores on the Marital Views Survey indicated they were satisfied in their marriage, independently completed the Kirton Adaption-Innovation Inventory (KAI; Kirton, 1976) to determine their cognitive style (adaptor or innovator). Both members of 45 divorced couples also completed the KAI. Significantly more adaptor/adaptor dyads (32/45, i.e., 71%) were found among married couples than in the divorced sample, suggesting that the preference for structure characteristic of spouses in adaptor/adaptor pairings enables them to produce mutually beneficial approaches to change and solutions to problems in their marriages. The KAI may be valuable in the prospective determination of marital compatibility, and in therapy protocols for couples with marital difficulties.
Keywords: marriage, marital success, adaption, innovation, cognitive style, relationship, couple.
Two opposing views have long dominated research into the role of personality characteristics in successful mate selection: (1) similarity, i.e., "birds of a feather flock together," and (2) complementarity, i.e., "opposites attract." In a test of the (more prominent) similarity hypothesis, Kurdek's (1993) five-year longitudinal study showed that individuals whose marriages became unstable or ended in divorce were more varied on trait, interdependence, and spousal discrepancy measures. Couples with congruent traits are more likely to have successful relationships (e.g., Cottrell, Neuberg, & Li, 2007; Gonzaga, Campos, & Bradbury, 2007).
The complementarity view suggests that individuals may be attracted to those whose personalities are dissimilar to their own. For example, Tracey, Ryan, and Jaschik-Herman (2001) showed that complementarity on measures of control and affiliation existed at the trait level in the long-term relationships of married couples. Such findings notwithstanding, the bulk of personality traits research has suggested that relationships based on complementarity end in marital stress or divorce (e.g., Berscheid & Regan, 2005; Glomb & Welsh, 2005).
According to Goldsmith (1989), "the concept of personality . . . [includes] cognitive styles" (p. 35). Research in organizational psychology has shown that similarities in cognitive style may enhance the success of interpersonal relationships. For example, Barsade, Ward, Turner, and Sonnenfeld (2000) reported that individuals with cognitive styles similar to those of their workplace team members had high satisfaction levels. Most studies, however, have provided...