Crossover of positive states and experiences.

In a previous editorial (Westman, 2011), I focused on the crossover of stress and strain between partners and among team members. The current editorial focuses on the crossover of positive states and experiences between partners. Crossover was defined by Bolger, DeLongis, Kessler, and Wethington (1989) as the interpersonal process that occurs when job stress or psychological strain experienced by one person affects the level of strain of another person in the same social environment. Most crossover studies have investigated and found evidence of the crossover of psychological strains such as anxiety (Westman, Etzion, & Horovitz, 2004), burnout (e.g. Bakker & Schaufeli, 2000; Westman & Etzion, 1995), distress (Barnett, Raudenbush, Brennan, Pleck, & Marshall, 1995), depression (Howe, Levy, & Caplan, 2004), work–family conflict (e.g. Hammer, Allen, & Grigsby, 1997; Westman & Etzion, 2005), health complaints and perceived health (Gorgievski-Duijvesteijn, Giessen, & Bakker, 2000; Westman, Keinan, Roziner, & Benyamini, 2008) and marital dissatisfaction (Westman, Vinokur, Hamilton, & Roziner, 2004). Westman (2001) proposed three different mechanisms to explain the crossover process. One, direct crossover, in which experiences and states are transmitted between partners via empathy. Two, indirect crossover that occurs via specific mediating or moderating mechanisms (e.g. spousal support and interaction style between partners). Finally, sharing some common stressors (e.g. economic difficulties) may lead to shared common affects (e.g. anxiety and dissatisfaction) in both partners. In this case, the relationship between partners’ dissatisfaction is spurious, because what appears to be a crossover effect is the result of common experiences. Westman (2001) has suggested broadening the definition of crossover to include the transmission of positive experiences and states. Accordingly, just as stressful job demands have a negative impact on the partner’s well-being, positive feelings following positive