Abstract: Purpose: Maintaining a long-term romantic relationship can improve happiness and life satisfaction. But the stability of an ongoing relationship may sometimes be challenged by conflict. According to interdependence theory, the shift from self-interested impulse and focus on the long-term maintenance of the relationship have been called transformation of motivation. Sacrifice requires transformation of motivation and can protect relationships. In romantic relationships, sacrifice means that individuals give up their immediate self-interests for the sake of their partner’s well-being and relationship satisfaction. But many studies had revealed that sacrifice itself did not help improve intimate relationship satisfaction, and what shaped the quality of intimate relationship is the motivations underlying people’s sacrifice behaviors. There are two kinds of sacrifice motivation: sacrifice approach motivation and sacrifice avoidance motivation. Sacrifice approach motivation is positively correlated with relationship, while sacrifice avoidance motivation is negatively correlated with relationship. This study proposed that the effect of sacrifice motivation on relationship was mediated by perceived partner’s sacrifice motivation. According to the interdependence perspective, interpersonal perceptions are subject to reciprocal influences in a dyadic relationship. Romantic relationship may be better understood by treating couple dyads as the unit of analysis. However, there is limited research that teats couples involved in romantic relationship as an integral unit in data analysis and investigates the question about how their sacrifice motivations improve their own relationship satisfaction and their partner’s relationship satisfaction. The current study aimed to examined the effect of sacrifice motivation on intimate relationship satisfaction and how such effect might be mediated by perceived partner’s sacrifice motivation, based on the actor-partner interdependence model (APIM). Methods: There were 168 participants and their romantic partner took part in our study. They all completed the whole self-report measurement of sacrifice motivation, perceived partner’s sacrifice motivation and romantic relationship satisfaction. The APIM was used to examine the hypotheses, and two types of mediation effects including mediated actor effects and mediated partner effects. Results: Both sacrificing for approach motivations and perceived partner’s sacrifice approach motivations positively predicted their own relationship satisfaction. Meditated actor effects showed that both male and female who report higher sacrifice approach motivations owned higher relationship satisfaction, and such association was mediated by their own perceived partner’s sacrifice motivations. Mediated partner effects showed that female who reported higher sacrifice approach motivations, their partner (the male) also reported higher relationship satisfaction, and this association was mediated by male perceived female’s sacrifice approach motivations. While male reported sacrifice approach motivation could not predict their partner’s (the female) perceive sacrifice approach motivation. Statistical tests indicated that there were no gender differences in mediated actor effects and mediated partner effects. This study found that neither partner’s own sacrifice avoidance nor their perceived of partner’s avoidance motivations was associated with their or their partner’s reported relationship satisfaction. The mediation effects found in approach motivation model was not repeated in avoidance motivation model. This result is consistent with the previous study in China. Conclusions: This study provides evidence to support the broader interpersonal framework for understanding sacrifice motivation and romantic relationship satisfaction. The current findings suggest that our own sacrifice approach motivations not only influence our own romantic relationship satisfaction but also affect our partner’s perceive of our sacrifice motivations and their relationship satisfaction. So when we encounter the conflicts of interest, and then decide to make a sacrifice, it’s better for us to sacrifice for approach goals.

Key words: sacrifice, approach-avoidance motivational theory, relationship satisfaction, actor-partner interdependence model

摘要： 目的：探究牺牲动机对亲密关系满意度的影响以及知觉到对方牺牲动机的中介作用。方法：对168对情侣采用亲密关系满意度、牺牲动机和知觉到对方的牺牲动机量表来测量，并运用行动者-对象相互依赖模型进行分析。结果：行动者效应：知觉到对方的牺牲趋近动机是牺牲趋近动机和关系满意度的中介变量。对象效应：只发现女性的牺牲趋近动机通过正向影响男性知觉到的牺牲趋近动机从而正向影响男性的关系满意度。结论：本研究有助于理解恋人双方做出牺牲行为背后的动机对于双方关系满意度的影响。

关键词: 牺牲行为 牺牲动机 知觉到对方的牺牲动机 关系满意度 行动者-对象相互依赖模型