The moderating role of psychological flexibility in the relationship between partner phubbing and romantic jealousy among Iranian women

Abstract

With the increasing use of digital technology, addressing related challenges has become highly important due to their potential impact on romantic relationships. The present study aimed to investigate the moderating role of psychological flexibility in the relationship between partner phubbing and the three dimensions of romantic jealousy among married women. This study employed a descriptive-correlational design. The statistical population consisted of married women living in Tehran, aged 20 to 35 years, with at least one year of marital experience. Participants were selected using convenience sampling, and 385 women took part in the study. The research instruments included the Partner Phubbing Scale (PPS), the Multidimensional Jealousy Scale (MJS), and the Psychological Flexibility Scale. After data preparation into SPSS, structural equation modeling was conducted using AMOS software. The findings indicated a positive and significant relationship between partner phubbing and romantic jealousy. In addition, psychological flexibility showed a negative and significant relationship with both romantic jealousy and partner phubbing. The results also demonstrated the moderating role of psychological flexibility in the relationship between partner phubbing and romantic jealousy. This moderating effect was not significant in the cognitive dimension but was observed in the emotional and behavioral dimensions, with different moderation patterns across these two dimensions. The proposed model demonstrated a good fit ( p < 0.05). Partner phubbing is associated with higher levels of romantic jealousy. Psychological flexibility may plays different moderating roles in the emotional and behavioral dimensions of jealousy; in the emotional dimension, it may act as a protective factor, whereas the interpretation of its role in the behavioral dimension requires further investigation. inform the development of interventions targeting jealousy-related responses in couple relationships. The aims and procedures of this study were reviewed and approved by the Ethics Committee of Alzahra University in Tehran (code: IR.ALZAHRA.REC.1404.066) on 13th June 2025.