Predicting Irritation Disclosures in Romantic Relationships: Testing and Extending the Revelation Risk Model

Feelings of irritation often emerge in romantic relationships. However, the theoretical mechanisms predicting whether individuals disclose these feelings to their romantic partner remain limited and largely reliant on examining indicators of future behavior rather than actual future behavior. Using a two-month, longitudinal survey design involving 448 participants, the current study tested the Revelation Risk Model (RRM) as a mechanism for predicting whether individuals would disclose or conceal feelings of irritation about their romantic partner. Relationship power was also incorporated as an additional predictor. The original RRM components (i.e., closeness, risk, communication efficacy, willingness to disclose) collectively predicted whether individuals disclosed or concealed feelings of irritation about their romantic partner. Relationship power predicted individuals’ communication efficacy, as well as perceived risk associated with disclosing their feelings of irritation. The findings are discussed in terms of their contributions to existing research on disclosure, irritations, and power in romantic relationships.