"It's the economy, honey!" Couples' blame attributions during the 2007-2009 economic crisis

In the current study the authors surveyed a nationally representative sample of 632 cohabiting American couples during the height of the 20072009 economic crisis to examine associations between relationship quality and partners' attributions of causation and blame for household money problems. In couples where women attributed causation for household money problems to their partners' debts, spending, or employment, both they and their partners reported lower relationship satisfaction unless women also reported blaming the national economic crisis. Blaming one's partner for household money problems was associated with lower relationship satisfaction unless individuals also blamed themselves. Being blamed for household money problems by one's partner was associated with lower satisfaction among women, but this association was attenuated if the male partner also blamed the economic crisis.