Group-Based Identity Accommodation In Older Adults' Romantic Relationships

In this study, older adults' reports of their romantic partner's accommodation based on older adults' membership in three groups were examined as predictors of relational closeness and loneliness. The three groups were older adults' most important, second-most important, and third-most important group affiliations. A two-way interaction involving accommodation based on membership in the second-most important and third-most important groups emerged in predicting relational closeness: Relational closeness remained consistently high when older adults perceived that their romantic partner engaged in high levels of accommodation based on older adults' third-most important group, regardless of the level of accommodation based on older adults' second-most important group. Relational closeness dropped most precipitously when accommodation based on both the second-most important and third-most important groups was low. Additionally, receiving accommodation based on the third-most important group predicted less loneliness at the main-effects level. Findings are discussed in terms of communication accommodation theory and identity layering.