Cognitive flexibility as a mediator between romantic relationship satisfaction and marriage attitudes in young adults

This study examines the mediating role of cognitive flexibility in the relationship between romantic relationship satisfaction and marriage attitudes during emerging adulthood. A model incorporating cognitive flexibility as a mediator was developed to evaluate both the direct effects of romantic relationships and the impact of the mediator. The sample of the study consisted of 436 young adults (240 women, 196 men) living in Turkey who had experienced a romantic relationships. Data were collected using the Personal Information Form, the Relationship Satisfaction Scale, the Inonu Marriage Attitude Scale, and the Cognitive Flexibility Scale. The proposed model was tested through Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) using AMOS 24. Additionally, bootstrapping analysis was applied to assess the significance of the mediation effect. The results revealed that romantic relationship satisfaction positively and significantly predicted both marriage attitudes and cognitive flexibility, while cognitive flexibility also significantly predicted marriage attitudes. The mediation analysis indicated that cognitive flexibility played a significant mediating role in the relationship between romantic relationship satisfaction and marriage attitudes. The findings of the study were discussed in the context of existing literature, and recommendations for practitioners and researchers were provided.