Judgments of relationship satisfaction: Inter- and intraindividual comparisons as a function of questionnaire structure

Abstract Two experiments demonstrate that individuals use an interindividual comparison strategy to evaluate a speciJic life-domain if their attention is drawn to only one aspect of that domain, that has either positive or negative evaluative implications. If their attention is drawn to two aspects with opposite implications, however, an intra- individual strategy, based on the comparison of both aspects, is preferred. Whether one or two aspects bearing on a specific domain are salient is, among other conditions, a function of the number of aspects assessed in a questionnaire. Theoretical and methodological implications are discussed. INTRODUCTION Comparison processes have long been recognized to be at the heart of satisfaction judgments. From early philosophical considerations of the nature of contentment and happiness (for a review see Tatarkiewicz, 1976) to recent empirical investigations (for reviews see Diener, 1984; Strack, Argyle and Schwarz, in press), theoreticians have