Tired, angry, and unhappy with us: Poor sleep quality predicts increased anger and worsened perceptions of relationship quality

Abstract

Existing research demonstrates that poor sleep is associated with lower perceptions of relationship quality. Poor sleep also predicts more intense experiences of negative affect, anger in particular. Greater anger is also tied to worse relationship outcomes. The current research explored the interplay among these factors across three studies: one correlational, one longitudinal, and one quasi-experiment (Total N = 695). We hypothesized that poorer sleep quality would predict worsened perceived relationship quality and increased anger. We also hypothesized that increased anger would account for the association between poorer sleep and reduced perceived relationship quality. Our hypotheses were supported.