Before the analyses testing that hypothesis, we examined the factor structure of the FAM. The FAM Dyadic Relationship Scale consists of 42 items organized theoretically into seven subscales (task accomplishment, role performance, communication, affective expression, involvement, control, values and norms). On this scale, one member of a spousal pair rates his or her relationship with the spouse. Examples of item text include, “This person still likes me even when I argue with him/her” and “This person often ruins things for me.” The subscales are, in our data and in previous studies (28), highly correlated (r ≈ .65–.8). Exploratory factor analysis showed that after dropping a single item that loaded to its own factor, a single factor had the best fit to the data. Unidimensionality was verified by confirmatory factor analysis.
