Resumen de It's a matter of time: The effect of depletion on communal action in romantic relationships is moderated by relationship length.

Lara K. Kammrath, Johanna Peetz, Kimberley Hara, Arden Demarco, Kristen Wood, Jackie Kirkconnell, Harley Meirovich, Thomas Allen

• Researchers have only begun to turn their attention to the role of self-control in communal action (rather than communal restraint) in relationships. Conflicting results from early studies indicate that the association between self-control and communal action may be quite complex, and potentially moderated by many variables. Here we investigate how relationship length may moderate the extent to which communal actions require self-control resources. In 5 studies, we investigated the role of self-control resources in implementing (Studies 1 and 2) and in choosing (Studies 3-5) communal actions for a romantic partner, as a function of the length of time partners had been together. The data supported the hypothesis that as relationships mature over time, communal actions may require less self-control to implement and may become a decisional default. These findings suggest that communal actions may be a more deliberative response in newer romantic relationships but a more reflexive response in more established relationships. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2015 APA, all rights reserved)