Recent research published in the Journal of Consumer Psychology (a Financial Times Top 50 journal) by Danielle Brick in the Marketing Department illustrates a novel theory on shared consumer decision making. (Better to Decide Together: Shared Consumer Decision Making, Perceived Power, and Relationship Satisfaction)
This research suggests that making consumer decisions with a relationship partner, even ones as small as which laundry detergent to buy, can increase perceptions of power in the relationship, which in turn can lead to positive outcomes such as increased satisfaction.
In fact, the findings consistently show that people feel more powerful, and thus happier, when their partners are involved in decisions that affect the relationship than when they are the sole deciders. Based on these findings, it seems that if you want to be happier in your relationship, perhaps you should go grocery shopping with your partner.
