2.2. Instruments

Socio-demographic variables. Gender, age, sexual orientation, relationship duration and cohabitation with the partner were assessed by an ad hoc questionnaire.

Emotional intelligence. Emotional intelligence was evaluated through the Trait Meta-Mood Scale-24 (TMMS-24; developed by [54] and validated in Spanish population by [55]). The scale is composed of 24 items with a five-point Likert scale (1 = No agreement; 5 = Complete agreement) that evaluates three factors: (1) Attention: observation and thoughts about own emotions (e.g., “I usually spend time thinking about my emotions”; (2) Clarity: understanding of own emotional states (e.g., “I am clear about my feelings”); and (3) Repair: ability to regulate own emotions (e.g., “Although I sometimes feel sad, I usually have an optimistic view”). All three factors were highly reliable both in the Spanish validation (α = 0.88, α = 0.91 and α = 0.85, respectively) and in the present study (α = 0.87, α = 0.87 and α = 0.84).

Couple’s emotional inter-regulation. The Interpersonal Emotion Regulation for Couples Scale (SIERC; developed and validated in an original Spanish form by [56]) was used. It is composed of two forms (Form A and Form B) with 24 items each and answers from one to five (1 = Almost never; 5 = Almost always). Both forms of the questionnaire are answered by the same respondent. The respondent will be called “actor” from now on, and the respondent’s partner will be called “partner”. This instrument is composed of three dimensions (“Emotional expression”, “Emotional understanding” and “Emotional management”) with two different forms (Form A and Form B). Form A (SIERC-A) assesses the actor’s perception of their own abilities to inter-regulate the partner’s emotions, and Form B (SIERC-B) assesses the actor’s perception of the partner’s ability to inter-regulate emotions with the actor. Three dimensions are described as follows: (1) Emotional expression: in Form A, this dimension assesses the actor’s ability to express emotions in front of the partner (e.g., “I avoid being emotional in front of my partner”); in Form B, this dimension assesses the actor’s perception of the partner’s ability to express emotions in front of the actor (e.g., “My partner avoids being emotional in front of me”). (2) Emotional understanding: in Form A, this dimension measures the actor’s ability to attend to and understand the partner’s emotions (e.g., “I often ask my partner about how they are feeling”); Form B assesses the actor’s perception of the partner’s ability to attend and understand the actor’s emotions (e.g., “My partner often asks me how I am or how I am feeling”). (3) Emotional management: in Form A, this factor assesses the actor’s ability to validate and soothe the partner’s emotions (e.g., “My partner can freely express their emotions to me, because I am not judgmental about them”); Form B measures the actor’s perception of the partner’s ability to validate and soothe the actor’s emotions (e.g., “I can freely express my emotions to my partner, because they are not judgmental about them”). The reliability of the scale in our sample was good (Form A: α = 0.85; α = 0.81; and α = 0.78; Form B: α = 0.84; α = 0.86; and α = 0.85, respectively).

Adult attachment. The Experiences in Intimate Relationships questionnaire (ECR-S; developed by [57] and validated version in Spanish by [58]) was used to measure attachment. This instrument consists of 36 items with a seven-point Likert scale (1 = Totally disagree; 7 = Totally agree). It assesses two dimensions of attachment: anxiety (fear of rejection and abandonment by romantic partners) and avoidance (the degree to which the person feels uncomfortable maintaining emotional intimacy with others). The reliability of the scale in our sample was good (anxiety: α = 0.81; avoidance: α = 0.89).

Relationship satisfaction. Relationship satisfaction was assessed using the Relationship Rating Scale (RAS; developed by [59] and validated version in Spanish by [60]). This consists of seven items in a 5-point Likert scale (1 = Strongly Disagree; 5 = Strongly Agree). The questions refer to the degree of satisfaction, quality of the relationship, the coverage of needs and difficulties in the relationship. This instrument provides an overall score that indicates the degree of general relationship satisfaction, with reliability (α) of 0.86. The reliability for this study was good (α = 0.81).