Wives who quickly calm down during disputes are the happiest and enjoy happier marriages.

Their nagging is often blamed as the source of many a row. But wives do in fact hold the key to wedded bliss, researchers say.

A new study has found that that, when it comes to keeping the peace, it is more important for wives to calm down after a heated argument than their husbands.

The research, from the University of California, Berkeley, found that while both spouses were equally able to cool down during conflicts, how well a husband kept his emotions in check had little or no effect on long-term marital satisfaction.

'When it comes to managing negative emotion during conflict, wives really matter,' 

Time and again, they found that marriages in which wives quickly calmed down during disputes were ultimately shown to be the happiest, both in the short and long run,

'Emotions such as anger and contempt can seem very threatening for couples. But our study suggests that if spouses, especially wives, are able to calm themselves, their marriages can continue to thrive,' Bloch said.

While it is commonly held that women play the role of peacemaker in relationships, the study is among the first to reveal this pattern over a long period of time, the researchers say.

Moving on: Time and again, the researchers found that marriages in which wives quickly calmed down during disputes were ultimately shown to be the happiest, both in the short and long run

And the best way to get over a row? When women used 'constructive communication' to temper disagreements.

'When wives discuss problems and suggest solutions, it helps couples deal with conflicts,' said UC Berkeley psychologist Robert W. Levenson, senior author of the study.

'Ironically, this may not work so well for husbands, who wives often criticise for leaping into problem-solving mode too quickly.'

The researchers noted that age may also play a role in how couples interact when conflicts arise.

'The middle-aged and older couples in our study grew up in a world that treated men and women very differently,' they said. It will be interesting to see how these gender dynamics play out in younger couples.'

The research is published in the journal Emotion.

Sadly today, a lot of women in relationship don't play the peacemaker role, that role has been occupied now by their husbands.