Financial well-being, mindfulness and marital duration as predictors of relationship satisfaction among married couples in Malaysia

Abstract

This study aims to identify the potential predictors (i.e., financial well-being, mindfulness, and marital duration) of relationship satisfaction among married couples in Malaysia. Respondents were 156 Malaysian married couples from different races – Malay, Chinese, Indian, and others. All respondents responded to three questionnaires which are In Charge Financial Distress/ Financial Well-Being Scale (Prawitz et al., 2006), Mindfulness Attention Awareness Scale (Brown & Ryan, 2003), and Couple Satisfaction Index (Funk & Rogge, 2007). A significant positive relationship was found between financial well-being and mindfulness with relationship satisfaction, meanwhile, no statistically significant relationship was found between marital duration and relationship satisfaction. Moreover, mindfulness is established to be the strongest predictor of relationship satisfaction among married couples in Malaysia. This result emphasized the role of mindfulness within the context of development and sustainability of marital relationships satisfaction in addition to general well-being.