Desperate housewives? Communication difficulties and the dynamics of marital (un)happiness

• 成果类型: Article
• 署名作者: Thompson, Peter
• 署名单位: State University System of Florida; Florida International University
• 刊物名称: ECONOMIC JOURNAL
• ISSN/ISSBN: 0013-0133
• DOI: 10.1111/j.1468-0297.2008.02184.x
• 发表日期: 2008
• 页码: 1640-1669
• 关键词: DECISION-MAKING; follow-up; marriage; therapy; LIFE; entrepreneurs; emotions; QUALITY

摘要

The quality of a marriage depends on the proximity of a collective action to a unknown target. Individuals receive private signals about the target, and can communicate them only imperfectly to their spouses. Because of imperfect communication, spouses may hold different beliefs about the optimal action. If a couple's beliefs diverge too widely, one or both of them may prefer to dissolve the marriage. The article explores how poor communication contributes to marital unhappiness, as well as its implications for the dynamics of divorce risk, the welfare properties of divorce decisions and the role of counselling.