Relationship status-mental health concerns association: An examination of attachment and attention

Introduction Past studies have revealed an advantage of marriage over singlehood, but the role of relationship status in mental health concerns needs further investigation. Objective This paper examined the connection between relationship status and mental health concerns and explored the cognitive and affective mechanisms explaining it, using a multi-method approach. Method Study 1 was an online study with equal groups of married (n =125) or single individuals (n =125), whereas Study 2 was a probabilistic laboratory study with two natural groups of individuals that were either single (n =21) or in a relationship (n =89). Results Path analyses showed that attachment avoidance and attentional control could act as mediators explaining the role of relationship status in mental health concerns. Conclusion We showed that being in a relationship or being married was associated with better mental health and that the benefits of marriage and couple life on mental health were explained by attachment and attention.