Abstract: People holding religious and conservative values often have specific expectations for how romantic relationships should function and appear. Although religious beliefs and practice, and social ideology have been found to influence relationships in a number of ways (e.g., sex/gender roles, bisexuality), little work has examined how these core belief systems influence the cognitive underpinnings of romantic relationships. The present work explores these influences by modeling them within the investment model of commitment. Using one sample of romantic partners and one traditional sample, the influence of religious and conservative values was evaluated. The results indicated that external religiosity, authoritarianism, and traditionalism moderate the impact of satisfaction, investments, and alternatives on commitment to relationships. The findings suggest that core beliefs influence not only the social expressions of romantic relationships, but the basic components that determine relationship longevity and maintenance behaviors. Theoretical and practical implications of these findings will be discussed.

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