Carsten Wrosch

Introduction Recent meta‐analytic research suggests that the absence of pessimism could be a stronger predictor of physical health than the presence of optimism. The present study examined the role of subjective well‐being in the effects of optimism and pessimism on physical health in romantic couples. It was hypothesized that pessimism would be more strongly associated with both well‐being and health than optimism, intra‐ and interpersonally. Subjective well‐being was also expected to explain variance in the associations between optimism, pessimism, and health. Methods A baseline sample of 153 opposite‐sex couples completed various measures of subjective well‐being (e.g., life satisfaction, positive and negative affect, and depressive symptoms) and physical health (e.g., subjective health, sleep efficiency, physical symptoms, cold symptoms, and chronic illness). Results Results of actor‐partner interdependence models showed that the absence of pessimism, but not the presence of optimism, was associated with better physical health at baseline and over time. Pessimism was also a stronger predictor than optimism of baseline levels in some indicators of subjective well‐being. These effects were obtained intra‐ and interpersonally. Finally, subjective well‐being explained variance in some of the effects of pessimism on levels of physical health. Implications for theory, research, and practice are discussed.