Predicting Marital Burnout from Emotional Intimacy and Perceived Partner Responsiveness: The Mediating Role of Dyadic Coping

Taavi Leppik; Mark Robertson; Dace Ozoliņa

Authors

Taavi Leppik Department of Psychology, Tallinn University, Tallinn, Estonia Author https://orcid.org/0009-0009-9468-1209
Mark Robertson Department of Forensic Psychology, Simon Fraser University, Burnaby, Canada Corresponding Author https://orcid.org/0009-0002-7057-1944
Dace Ozoliņa Department of Psychology, Riga Stradiņš University, Riga, Latvia Author https://orcid.org/0009-0003-8329-025X

Keywords:

Marital Burnout, Emotional Intimacy, Perceived Partner Responsiveness, Dyadic Coping, Marriage, Structural Equation Modeling

Abstract

Objective: The present study aimed to predict marital burnout from emotional intimacy and perceived partner responsiveness and to examine the mediating role of dyadic coping among married adults in Canada.

Methods and Materials: This quantitative, cross-sectional correlational study was conducted on 384 married adults residing in Canada in 2026. Participants were recruited through convenience and online purposive sampling. Data were collected using the Couple Burnout Measure, Emotional Intimacy Scale, Perceived Partner Responsiveness Scale, Dyadic Coping Inventory, and a demographic questionnaire. Pearson correlation coefficients were used to examine bivariate relationships among the study variables. Confirmatory factor analysis and structural equation modeling were performed using IBM SPSS Statistics and AMOS to test the hypothesized direct and indirect relationships. Model fit was evaluated using χ²/df, CFI, TLI, RMSEA, and SRMR. The mediating effects of dyadic coping were assessed using a nonparametric bootstrap procedure with 5,000 resamples and bias-corrected 95% confidence intervals.

Findings: Emotional intimacy was significantly associated with lower marital burnout (r = -.61, p < .001) and greater dyadic coping (r = .58, p < .001). Perceived partner responsiveness was also negatively correlated with marital burnout (r = -.66, p < .001) and positively correlated with dyadic coping (r = .67, p < .001). Dyadic coping showed a strong inverse correlation with marital burnout (r = -.71, p < .001). In the structural model, emotional intimacy (β = -.23, p < .001), perceived partner responsiveness (β = -.27, p < .001), and dyadic coping (β = -.46, p < .001) significantly predicted marital burnout. Emotional intimacy (β = .29, p < .001) and perceived partner responsiveness (β = .48, p < .001) significantly predicted dyadic coping. Bootstrap analyses confirmed significant indirect effects of emotional intimacy (β = -.133, 95% CI [-.190, -.084]) and perceived partner responsiveness (β = -.221, 95% CI [-.293, -.158]) on marital burnout through dyadic coping, indicating partial mediation.

Conclusion: Greater emotional intimacy and perceived partner responsiveness are associated with lower marital burnout both directly and indirectly through more adaptive dyadic coping, highlighting dyadic coping as an important relational mechanism for reducing marital exhaustion.

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