Research on the connection between relationship quality and body weight yields mixed results, suggesting the presence of a moderating variable. We tested whether the connection between four measures of relationship quality (conflict, ambivalence, maintenance, and love) and body mass index (BMI) was moderated by gender and couples’ unhealthy behaviors. The results showed that among women, those reporting good relationship quality had lower BMI than those with poor relationship quality, but only if they also showed little evidence of couples’ unhealthy behaviors. In other words, only the combination of high relationship quality and low prevalence of couples’ unhealthy behaviors was linked to lower BMI among women. In contrast, low relationship quality, regardless of couples’ unhealthy behaviors, and the combination of high relationship quality and high prevalence of couples’ unhealthy behaviors were all linked to higher BMI among women. These associations were not observed among men. The results suggest the presence of symptom-system fit—a relational pattern linking health detrimental behaviors and higher relationship quality.
This study sought to gain a better understanding of the process narrators embark upon when deciding what version of a story to tell to a particular audience; a process, hereafter, referred to as narrative adaptation. Inductive, open coding of 25 semi-structured interviews resulted in six rules of telling: (1) If an emotionally close relationship exists with the listener(s), then a more detailed story is told; (2) If it is believed that the listener(s) will not wrongfully judge the storyteller, then a more detailed story is told; (3) If the listener(s) display interest in the story, then a more detailed story is told; (4) If the physical setting is not appropriate, then the story is condensed; (5) If the conversational context is not appropriate, then the story is condensed; and (6) If a meaningful purpose will be fulfilled by telling the story, then a more detailed story is told. Implications of studying the process of narrative adaptation are discussed.
The social, economic, and physical costs associated with providing long-term care for a child with disabilities can be overwhelming, and it is not uncommon for caregivers to experience burnout, emotional distress, and significant health ailments as a result of their commitment to their child. Social support can be a key resource to combat these negative effects, as ample research has shown that social support can act as a buffer to the negative effects of stress. The current study explored whether short-term supportive interactions between parents of children with disabilities and members of their supportive network (n = 40 dyads) influenced the physiological stress responses (as measured by salivary cortisol) of both interactants. Results indicated that receiving support in a short interaction resulted in parents experiencing decreases to their physiological stress, though the quality of the support played a key role in determining how beneficial the interaction was in this context. These results suggest the importance of considering support quality when examining the influence of social support on physical outcomes for support recipients.
The study examined the association between basic need satisfaction in the couple relationship (basic need satisfaction in the relationship [BNSR]) and personal growth (PG), using a sample of 57 lesbian mothers individually matched with 57 heterosexual mothers. BNSR was found to correlate positively with growth only among lesbian mothers, while no significant association was found among heterosexual mothers. The findings are explained in terms of the particular characteristics of lesbian couples, such as high emotional support, equal division of labor, and absence of traditional gender roles. The potential contribution of these features to PG in the context of lesbian motherhood, which is planned, intentional, and often achieved after contending with minority stress and challenging life circumstances, is discussed.
Relationship conflict often incites fears of rejection, and rejection fears can lead to destructive behaviors toward intimate partners. In the current study, we tested whether dispositional mindfulness attenuated rejection fears, and destructive behaviors arising from rejection fears, during daily conflict with romantic partners. Participants first completed measures of dispositional mindfulness, self-esteem, relationship commitment, and self-control. Participants then reported their daily experiences of conflict with their romantic partner, fears of rejection, and destructive behavior each day for 10 days. Greater daily conflict was associated with increases in daily rejection fears, and greater rejection fears were associated with increases in destructive behaviors. However, both of these within-person associations were attenuated for people higher in dispositional mindfulness. Moreover, the buffering effect of mindfulness on rejection fears was particularly effective for those low in self-esteem who chronically doubt their relational value and typically show heightened fears of rejection. The attenuating effect of mindfulness on rejection fears and destructive behaviors was also independent of other factors shown to produce more constructive reactions to relationship conflict, including participants’ relationship commitment and self-control. These results reveal the unique and important role dispositional mindfulness plays in regulating rejection fears and facilitating more constructive behaviors during daily life.
The purpose of this study is to examine how cohabiting partners’ plans to marry after the birth of their child were associated with marriage realization or continued cohabitation when their child was 1, 3, and 5 years old. Possible parents’ gender differences, couple agreement, and the longitudinal associations were examined. Using four waves of data from the Fragile Family and Child Wellbeing Study, results from logistic regressions showed that (1) the majority of cohabiting mothers and fathers had plans to marry their partner after the birth of their child; (2) in general, mothers’ plans to marry were significantly associated with couples’ marriage realization whereas fathers’ were not; (3) agreements between partners in their marriage plans were associated with marriage realization. Other relational and demographic characteristics were also considered. Research and clinical implications of the findings were discussed.
This study examined the intrapersonal and interpersonal mechanisms underlying family member reports of negative relational disclosures and closeness. Participants included a mother, father, and young adult child from 170 families (N = 510). Social relations analyses revealed that negative relational disclosures and closeness vary across family relationships as a function of actor and relationship effects. Mothers’ reports of negative disclosures from other family members varied primarily as a function of actor effects, whereas their closeness varied as a function of relationship and partner effects. Dyadic reciprocity emerged in both the father–child and spousal relationships. Fathers who received negative disclosures from their spouse and their child were more likely to have both family members report being closer to them, respectively.
Dominant behavior has been related to lower quality romantic relationships. The present study examined two processes through which dominant behavior affects the quality of romantic relationships: (1) the extent to which the partner’s dominance increases the person’s negative affect by thwarting the person’s sense of autonomy and (2) the degree to which the person’s negative affect in reaction to the partner’s dominant behavior affects relationship satisfaction. Using an event-contingent recording (ECR) methodology, 92 cohabiting couples reported their dominant behavior, negative affect, and autonomy in interactions with each other during 20 days. Relationship satisfaction was measured at the end of the ECR period. The results indicated that when a partner engages in dominant behavior, the person experiences greater negative affect in part due to a sense of thwarted autonomy and that greater negative affective reaction in association with the partner’s dominant behavior is related to lower relationship satisfaction in the person.
Prior work examining intimate partner violence (IPV) among young adults often has emphasized familial characteristics, such as parent–child physical aggression (PCPA), and romantic relationship dynamics, such as jealousy and controlling behaviors, but has not considered these two domains simultaneously. Likewise, research examining how these two domains affect IPV perpetration over time for young adults is still limited. Using five waves of data from the Toledo Adolescent Relationships Study (N = 950), the present study examined the influence of parent–child relationship factors and romantic relationship dynamics in both their main and interactive effects on IPV perpetration spanning adolescence through young adulthood. Results from random-effects analyses indicated that both familial and romantic relationship dynamics should be taken into account when predicting IPV perpetration. Importantly, these two domains interacted to produce cumulatively different risk for engaging in violence against a romantic partner. Individuals were more likely to perpetrate IPV when their romantic relationship was characterized by verbal aggression if they reported PCPA experiences.
Growing evidence implicates stress as a reliable correlate of relationship satisfaction; yet, existing models fail to address why some relationships are more vulnerable than others to this effect. We draw from the literature on individual differences in self-regulation to predict that individuals who are more action oriented when confronted with aversive demands will buffer themselves and their partners against the detrimental effect of external stress. Using actor–partner interdependence modeling on self-report data from 368 couples, we show that the relationship satisfaction of highly stressed but action-oriented individuals and their partners is compromised less by external stress than that of state-oriented individuals and their partners. These results held after controlling for symptoms of depression and were not moderated by gender or by age, despite sampling couples varying widely in relationship duration. Results support the view that individual differences in self-regulation, and action orientation in particular, might benefit relationships confronted by stress, thus clarifying how dyads might be affected by demands outside their relationship.
This research studied the development of self-esteem through adolescence and emerging adulthood. It also analyzed sex differences and the role of family and peers in developmental trends in self-esteem. Data comes from a longitudinal study in which we administered the Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale to 90 Spanish boys and girls at ages 13, 15, 17, and 21 years. Results showed a linear increase in self-esteem, higher for boys than for girls, during adolescence and emerging adulthood. Initial variability was related to care received from the mother during childhood, whereas the increase in self-esteem throughout adolescence and emerging adulthood was related to peer attachment.
Social support is a vital component of well-being and a principal benefit of having close, positive personal relationships. When offers of social support are perceived as unwanted or burdensome by recipients, however, they can carry implicit threats to the recipients’ positive and negative face needs. Moreover, declining such offers requires recipients to manage probable face threats to providers. The present study explored offers of undesired social support—and responses to those offers—from the perspective of politeness theory and face threats. A total of 503 participants described situations when they were offered social support they saw as undesirable and burdensome. Reasons for not wanting social support (including face threats to receivers) were codified. The most common reasons for not wanting offered support were perceived threats to receivers’ negative face, a mismatch between the need and the support being offered, and a perception that providing support would be burdensome for providers. Participants evidenced all five forms of facework in their responses to such offers, with positive politeness being the most common strategy.
This study compared romantic relationships in which there was a substantial difference (>1 SD) in the commitment levels of the two partners to those with more equal levels. These asymmetrically committed relationships (ACRs) were studied in a national, longitudinal sample of unmarried, opposite-sex romantic relationships (N = 315 couples); 64.8% (n = 204) of relationships were categorized as non-ACRs, 22.8% were ACRs in which the male partner was less committed than the female partner (n = 72), and 12.4% (n = 39) were ACRs in which the female partner was less committed than the male partner. Those who were cohabiting or who had children together were more likely to be in ACRs than those without these characteristics. Compared to those not in ACRs, the less committed partners in ACRs (referred to as "weak links") reported lower relationship adjustment, more conflict, and more aggression in their relationships; however, these differences were explained by their low levels of commitment. The more committed partners in ACRs ("strong links") also reported lower relationship adjustment, more conflict, and more aggression than those not in ACRs, even when controlling for their levels of commitment (which were also higher, on average, than those not in ACRs); this finding is noteworthy given that high levels of commitment usually inhibit conflict and aggression. Relationships in which the female partner was the weak link were more likely to break up within 2 years (54%) than those with male weak links (29%) or non-ACRs (34%). However, asymmetrical commitment was not nearly as important a predictor of breakup as females’ levels of commitment. The findings advance the understanding of asymmetrical commitment in romantic relationships and highlight the value of studying both members of a couple in research on commitment.
Using the actor–partner interdependence moderation model, this study provides a first look at the associations among sacrifice, commitment, and marital quality during the early years of marriage based on two annual waves of data obtained from Chinese couples. We found that both husbands’ and wives’ perceived cost of sacrifice (HSC and WSC, respectively) rather than frequency of sacrifice was negatively associated with the concurrent levels of their own marital quality, and that HSC was also negatively related to the subsequent changes in their own marital quality. Moreover, wives’ commitment (WCOM) moderated the association between their perceived cost of sacrifice and the concurrent levels of their own marital quality; husbands’ commitment (HCOM) moderated the associations between WSC and the concurrent levels of both husbands’ and wives’ marital quality; and WCOM moderated the association between their perceived frequency of sacrifice and the subsequent changes in husbands’ marital quality. Such findings advance our understanding of how sacrifice and commitment operate in conjunction to influence marital well-being during a stressful, transitional family life stage in a historically understudied population.
Despite the growth in research examining the use of computer-mediated communication (CMC) for exchanging social support, there remains much to learn about the support-related implications of CMC. An experiment was conducted to examine the influence of the reduced social cues associated with CMC on the outcomes of supportive interaction. Participants discussed a stressor with a confederate either face-to-face or via CMC and received informational or emotional support. Although they received the exact same support messages, participants in the CMC condition reported significantly greater worry and uncertainty discrepancy following the interaction than participants in the face-to-face condition. A main effect was also found for support message type. Consistent with the optimal matching model, informational support led to more beneficial outcomes than emotional support in response to the (controllable) stressor experienced by participants.
Intimate partners consuming different amounts of alcohol tend to have lower relationship satisfaction, whereas those drinking at similar levels often report happier unions. It is presently unclear how dyadic alcohol use patterns impact relationship satisfaction for couples wherein one member has an alcohol use disorder. We examined this using longitudinal data from an alcoholic treatment sample (N = 181) and further explored whether conflict pursuant to differential use played a mediating role. Partners similar in their baseline frequency of alcohol intoxication reported higher initial satisfaction but experienced significant declines in satisfaction longitudinally. Highly differential alcohol use was associated with lower satisfaction for both partners at baseline, which was mediated by conflict specific to men’s alcohol use. Notably, baseline relationship variables also predicted subsequent changes in alcohol use. These findings overall support a dyadic understanding of alcoholism and highlight that drinking patterns may link to long-term relationship outcomes differently for alcoholics.
Our study investigated the associations among two expressions of perceived parental psychological control (dependency-oriented parental control [DPC] and achievement-oriented parental control [APC]), identity, and internalizing difficulties among college-attending emerging adults. In particular, our aim was to examine the potential role of identity in the pathways linking both DPC and APC to internalizing difficulties. Our participants included 495 Italian college students (49% males), between 19 and 28 years of age (mean = 23.37 years, standard deviation = 2.35). Our findings highlighted the existence of associations between APC, identity, and internalizing difficulties. Specifically, APC was negatively related to identity that, in turn, was related to both anxiety and depressive symptoms. Moreover, APC showed direct effects on internalizing difficulties, whereas DPC had neither direct nor indirect effects on the outcomes. Overall, our findings highlighted the importance of examining the different contribution of the two forms of parental psychological control to emerging adults’ internalizing difficulties via identity.
Within the field of relationship science there is increasing interest in the connections between close relationships and physical health. In the present study, we examined whether adolescents’ (~12 years old) and young adults’ (~20 years old) perceptions of their parents as a secure base prospectively predict C-reactive protein (CRP), a commonly used marker of inflammatory activity, at age 32 in a well-characterized sample of African Americans. We utilized existing data collected as part of the Maryland Adolescent Development in Context Study (MADICS) to construct measures of perceptions of parental secure base support (SBS), general parental support, and peer support in early adolescence and early adulthood. In the present study, SBS was operationalized as the perceived ability to depend on parents in times of need. Fifty-nine African American MADICS participants who reported on perceived support in early adolescence and early adulthood participated in a follow-up home visit at age 32 during which serum CRP was measured via a blood draw. After controlling for inflammation-related confounds (e.g., tobacco use, body mass index), adolescents’ perceptions of parental SBS, but not peer support or general parental support, predicted lower CRP values at age 32 (b = –.92, SE = .34, p < .05). None of the support variables in early adulthood predicted CRP at 32 years. This study adds to a growing literature on relationships and health-related outcomes and provides the first evidence for a link between parental SBS in adolescence and a marker of inflammatory activity in adulthood.
When an individual in a close relationship is diagnosed with a chronic illness, coping can be the responsibility of the patient or couple members can cope communally. Communal coping reflects a shared appraisal of a stressor (our problem instead of my problem) and collaborative efforts to address the stressor. The current study examined whether patients’ and partners’ communal coping levels were associated with relational and health functioning among 70 couples in which one member was recently diagnosed with type 2 diabetes. We assessed explicit communal coping with self-reported "inclusion of the other in the self" in regard to diabetes management and implicit communal coping with first-person plural pronoun usage during a diabetes discussion. We also assessed patient reports of support received from partners, patient and partner psychological distress, and patient self-care behavior. Results showed that patient explicit communal coping was related to better patient relationship quality and greater support receipt from partners. Patient and partner explicit communal coping also were related to reduced partner distress but not patient distress. Instead, partner implicit communal coping was related to reduced patient distress. Most noteworthy, partner implicit communal coping was related to better patient self-care behavior. These results suggest that communal coping may be beneficial for both relationships and health but that the effects of explicit measures differ from those of implicit measures. Patients might benefit especially from partner communal coping efforts that are less obvious.
Although organizational research on workplace friendships is well established, it has been criticized for its predominately postpositivistic outlook, which largely focuses on how workplace friendships can be linked to improving organizational outcomes such as efficiency and performance. As a consequence, other aspects of the lived experiences of work and friendship are obscured, in particular how these friendships are important in their own right and how they function as social and personal relationships. Supplementing postpositivistic research on workplace friendships, this article shows how researchers can derive theoretical insights from a "sociology of friendship." The main contribution of this article relates to the development of a sociology of workplace friendship that understands the porous and mutable nature of these relationships and considers the social and personal factors that influence their role, place and meaning in the workplace. As such, three sociological frames of analysis are elaborated that encourage researchers to examine friendships at work as a set of contextually contingent social practices and as historically patterned social and personal relationships. This article articulates an agenda of research to inspire and guide researchers using these frames, one potential outcome of which is generating much needed scholarship that explores how workplace friendships contribute to human flourishing.
The roles that young people fulfill in face-to-face bullying have been well documented and there is some evidence that young people take on similar roles in cyber bullying. A person-centered analytical approach was adopted to identify the roles that young people fulfill across five different types of cyber bullying assessed for up to nine media. Four hundred and forty (281 females and 154 males) 16- to 19-year-olds completed measures to assess their involvement in various types of cyber bullying and across the various media. Cluster analysis identified four distinct groups: "not involved," "rarely victim and bully," "typically victim," and "retaliator." Two thirds of the sample reported some involvement in cyber bullying. Distinct patterns emerged for each group according to the type of cyber bullying. The lack of a clear bully group and the presence of the retaliator group strengthen the growing evidence base that young people may cyber bully others as a mechanism of retaliation when they are the victim of cyber bullying.
This study examined whether adolescents’ perceptions of maternal warmth and monitoring were associated with dating experience (experience vs. no experience) and romantic relationship duration in Mexico. We also explored whether respeto, age, and gender moderated these associations. Mexican adolescents (54% girls), aged 12–19, self-reported on their perceptions of maternal warmth and monitoring and romantic relationships. Findings suggest that more perceived maternal warmth was associated with longer relationships. The association between monitoring and relationship length was moderated by age and respeto. Specifically, more monitoring was associated with shorter relationships among older adolescents and those who reported lower levels of respeto. Adolescents who endorse respeto and those who are younger may not perceive maternal monitoring as an attempt to hinder their romantic relationships. Findings highlight the importance of cultural context and parental relationships in Mexican adolescents’ romantic experiences.
Relational savoring is the process of focusing one’s attention on the pleasurable parts of a relationship experience, and recent work has explored its relation to attachment styles. This study examined the relationship between attachment insecurity and the quality of responses to a relational savoring task among 63 mothers of children aged 9–12, testing the hypothesis that rumination mediated the relationship between greater attachment insecurity and lower quality savoring responses. Quality of savoring responses was measured two ways—on a macro level, via a global coding measure, as well as on a micro level, using word count analysis. Results indicated that greater attachment insecurity was related to lower quality relational savoring responses, and that in the case of attachment avoidance, maternal rumination mediated this relationship. These findings underscore the link between maternal attachment insecurity and poorer quality savoring, with preliminary cross-sectional findings pointing to rumination as an indirect effect explaining the link between attachment avoidance and poorer quality savoring. An inability to relish the positive aspects of parent–child interactions may be one factor underlying insecure parents’ insensitive caregiving and their diminished satisfaction in parenting. If replicated, these findings could have implications for clinical intervention using relational savoring.
The focus of this study was to understand both parental and peer influence on adolescents’ prosocial and substance use outcomes. Data were drawn from the Flourishing Families Project, which consisted of 500 individuals (Mage at Time 1 = 11.83; 51.6% female; 33% were from single-parent families) who participated at six time points, each approximately 1 year apart. Results suggest that parental warmth (at Time 2) was associated with self-regulation (Time 3), which was then associated with prosocial and deviant peer association (Time 4). Peer association was in turn related to prosocial behaviors and substance use (Time 7). Discussion focused on the role that both parents and peers play on adolescent outcomes and suggests that while peer influence during mid-adolescence is significantly linked with behavioral outcomes in late adolescence, early adolescent experiences of parental warmth also have indirect effects on the outcomes.
This study tested two possible ways that being relationally victimized may affect social cognition. Victims may develop a rejection attribution bias (i.e., experiencing social pain by engaging in cue distortion and attributing ambiguous social behavior to intentional rejection). Conversely, victims may develop a more generalized sensitivity to social pain, wherein they react negatively to a wider spectrum of social situations—even those in which they are obviously included and excluded). Participants (males = 55, females = 134) completed online surveys containing demographic, personality, and peer victimization measures. In a later session, participants came to the lab and were randomly assigned to one of three conditions: overt exclusion, ambiguous nonexclusion, and overt inclusion as part of an online ball-tossing game (Cyberball). The participants then completed self-report measures regarding their mood and experiences during the game. The results provided more support for the theoretical model that victims have a more generalized sensitivity to social pain; the rejection attribution theory was not supported.
Personality is known to be a key predictor for several aspects of close relationship functioning. Most likely, the influence of this psychological factor is even growing in contemporary societies, where the individual life biography is increasingly the result of personal preferences and less influenced by normative expectations and cultural institutions. In an era of high relationship instability, more and more people engage in a second union. Although it becomes increasingly relevant to study the effects of personality on close relationship functioning in higher order unions, this remained understudied until now. This study examines the impact of personality on partnership trajectories following divorce. First, we construct a typology of eight partnership trajectories, capturing the occurrence, order, and timing of different partnership events (e.g., repartnering, cohabiting, getting married) in the first 7 years after separation. Then, we use multinomial logistic regression to examine the association between personality and the post-separation partnership trajectories, thereby controlling for sociodemographic variables. The analyses are based on data from a large-scale representative survey, the Divorce in Flanders Survey. Results show that personality and sociodemographic factors are both important determinants for explaining post-separation partnership trajectories. Extraversion tends to increase the likelihood and speed of repartnering. Neuroticism lowers the stability in partnerships. Conscientiousness is related with a higher likelihood to remarry. A higher age at separation and the presence of children at home decrease the likelihood to repartner, while education increases this. The present study delivers an important contribution for unraveling part of the complex association between personality and partner relationship dynamics.
The relationship between attachment orientation and the emotional and thematic content of autobiographical memory about marriage in later life was investigated. A total of 242 older married adults received a quick recall interview to retrieve as many events as one could of what happened in his or her marital life. Each event was rated by the participant on its emotional valence, and its thematic content was coded by two raters according to three themes: interaction mode of the couple, life domain, and interpersonal context. Results indicated that attachment security and attachment avoidance, but not attachment anxiety, predicted the emotional valence and relationship-relevant thematic contents (e.g., relationship-maintaining life domain and between-couple interpersonal context) of marital memories. Attachment by gender interactions revealed that men with lower avoidance retrieved more relationship-maintaining events, and women with higher anxiety or lower avoidance retrieved more between-couple events. Implications of results are discussed.
Advice response theory (ART) proposes advisor characteristics, advice politeness, and advice content impact recipient perceptions of advice quality, their intention to implement the advice, and their coping. However, ART has primarily been examined in friend-to-friend advising on academic, romantic, or social issues. To test ART in an understudied relational and topical context, emerging adults (N = 196, aged 18–28 years) were surveyed about physical activity or exercise advice they received from a parent. Current findings supported propositions about advisor characteristics and politeness, and parent–child relational elements were particularly salient. Emerging adults satisfied with their parent–child relationship rated all advice features and outcomes more favorably, and participants who reported their parents conveyed that the participant was approved of, competent, and likeable rated all outcomes more favorably. Counter to ART predictions, emerging adults displayed psychological reactance to certain message content features, responding favorably to advice they perceived to propose an efficacious solution but reacting negatively to advice perceived to emphasize their capability of performing the action and the lack of drawbacks in doing so (especially when feelings of obligation were high). ART propositions about advisor characteristics and politeness may hold across advice situations, but the parent–child dynamic during emerging adulthood and inherent face threat for health influence attempts may explain why certain formulations of advice messages elicited responses inconsistent with ART.
This longitudinal study of 100 couples assessed individual and dyadic processes associated with romantic conflict recovery or how couples behave in the moments following conflict. Couples completed measures of attachment anxiety and avoidance; a conflict discussion during which affect, behavior, and conflict resolution were coded; a cooldown discussion during which post-conflict behavior was coded; and measures of relationship satisfaction and stability one year later. Recovery sabotage (negative behavior and perseveration on conflict in the moments following conflict) was associated with high attachment anxiety and low avoidance. Recovery sabotage was unrelated to affect expressed during conflict and was instead tied to whether partners aired or suppressed grievances. Consistent with the demand–withdraw conflict pattern, recovery sabotage was associated with lower actor conflict avoidance but higher partner conflict avoidance. These effects were independent of conflict resolution, which was not significantly associated with recovery sabotage when other features of conflict were controlled. Recovery sabotage and conflict resolution also differentially predicted satisfaction and stability one year later. Findings suggest recovery sabotage is a distinct, developmentally organized relationship process tied to attachment history and behavioral, rather than affective, transactions between partners during conflict.
Romantic relationships among emerging adults (individuals aged 18–25 years) are typically homogenously classified both theoretically and empirically as "exploratory" and "unstable." With a sample of college students (N = 340), we examined within-group variation among romantic relationships in emerging adulthood using latent class analyses. Four predictor variables indicated four types of romantic relationships among emerging adult college students: the committers (38%), the casual daters (23%), the settlers (30%), and the volatile daters (8%). Classes varied according to background variables such as gender and infidelity. Additionally, there was class variation for outcome variables such as breakup status and loneliness. Future research and implications are discussed.
This study takes a perceived affordance approach to explain how differences in teenagers’ mobile messaging behavior associate with indicators of friendship maintenance behavior. Based on a survey among 1943 teenagers, a structural equation model was tested in which their appreciation of three main affordances of mobile messaging predicted the companionship and support that they derive from their friends through their instrumental and expressive mobile messaging behavior. The model fitted the data well: teenagers’ appreciation for anytime–anyplace connectivity, private communication, and control over message content explained to what extent they use mobile messaging to micro-coordinate, to chitchat with friends, and to intimately self-disclose, thereby indirectly explaining the companionship and support that teens derive from friends. This finding supports the notion that inherent characteristics of technology play a role in contemporary relationship management by driving social uses of the technology.
Sharing a social identity is a key component of interdependence in romantic relationships. In particular, sharing a social network of friends and family members with a romantic partner enhances relationship quality, but maintaining an integrated social network is not always possible. When people lack a shared circle of friends with their partners, sharing media like TV shows, books, and movies with partners may compensate for this deficit and restore closeness. Two studies examined the influence of sharing real and fictional social worlds on relationship outcomes. Our findings showed that when people lack shared friends with their romantic partners, sharing media predicts greater relationship quality and people become motivated to share media with their partners. These studies show that shared media can enhance interdependence and allow people to compensate for lacking a shared social network in the real-world.
Transactive memory is a system for encoding, storing, and retrieving information between people, where each person has knowledge of the other’s memory. Through two studies, we assessed whether transactive memory occurs in best friendships (N = 682). Results showed that transactive memory systems (TMSs) do exist in best friendships. Importantly, stronger TMSs are associated with higher friendship quality (satisfaction and commitment), and their strength is related to different friendship characteristics (e.g., trust). A novel method for assessing TMS structure was developed. Mixed-gender friendships were associated with more differentiated structures (different knowledge), and friendships higher in inclusion of other in the self were associated with more integrated structures (similar knowledge). These studies have implications for the quality and operation of friendships.
The goal of this study was to examine how people respond to relational boredom in the context of growth-enhancing (i.e., novel) and security-restorative (i.e., familiar) shared activities. In Study 1, people’s prescriptive and descriptive beliefs for responding to relational boredom were assessed. Next, we developed a prime of relational boredom (Study 2a) and examined its effects on behavioral intentions for shared activities (Studies 2b and 3) as well as qualities of a planned date (Study 3). In Study 1, people thought they should engage in more growth-enhancing novel activities when bored (but not more security-restorative ones). However, for likely ratings (Study 1) and behavioral intentions (Studies 2b and 3), there were inconsistent findings for the idea that boredom prompts novel shared activities. Instead, in the context of relational boredom, people consistently displayed a pattern of being less likely to engage in security-restorative familiar shared activities.
The most popular method for investigating the mediation of the similarity-attraction link by trust involved first the manipulation of attitude similarity between the partner and the participant and then assessments of trust before attraction. Such correlational data precluded unambiguous inferences of causal flow of attitude similarity effects from trust to attraction. In the present study, we experimentally manipulated attitude similarity first and trust in the partner next, and measured trust in, and attraction toward, the partner after each manipulation. We found that similarity’s impact on trust remained stable over time but that on attraction declined substantially from the first to second assessment. Mediation analyses and structural equation modeling were consistent with a model in which causality flowed from attitude similarity to trust and then to attraction but not from attraction to trust. Findings also suggested that similarity can be expected to be secondary (or even redundant) when trust is already established.
The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between spousal positive social control (SPSC) and men’s health behaviors. This study also tested the mediating effect of health self-efficacy in this relationship and the moderating effects of age and relationship satisfaction (RS) in the association between SPSC and health behaviors and self-efficacy. A total of 506 unionized male workers answered a questionnaire assessing their level of health self-efficacy, how often they performed various health behaviors, and their perceptions of the frequency with which their spouse used positive social control to influence their health. Results indicated that SPSC was positively associated with health behaviors and that this association was mediated by health self-efficacy. Moderation analysis indicated that, for middle-aged and older men, SPSC was only positively associated with health self-efficacy when RS was high. Also, for older men only, when RS was low, SPSC had a backfiring effect and was negatively associated with health self-efficacy. Finally, results indicated the presence of a moderated mediation with the indirect effect of SPSC on health behaviors through health self-efficacy being moderated by age and relationship satisfaction. By indicating more precisely how, with whom, and under what circumstances SPSC can be beneficial or not, the results from this study have important implications for interventions promoting men’s health.
Loneliness stems from a mismatch between the social relationships one has and those one desires. Loneliness often has severe consequences for individuals and society. Recently, an online adaptation of the friendship enrichment program (FEP) was developed and tested to gain insight in its contribution to the alleviation of loneliness. Three loneliness coping strategies are introduced during the program: network development, adapting relationship standards, and reducing the importance of the discrepancy between actual and desired relationships. Data were collected among 239 participants aged 50–86. Loneliness was measured four times using a multi-item scale, and on various days with a single, direct question. Loneliness assessed with the scale declined during and after the program. Scores on loneliness assessed for a specific day, however, are more ambiguous. Despite the immediate positive effect of conducting assignments, we did not observe a decline in the single loneliness item score over the course of the program. The online FEP seems to reduce loneliness in general, but these effects are not visible on today’s loneliness. Nevertheless, the online intervention to reduce loneliness is a valuable new contribution to the collection of loneliness interventions.
This study examines constructions of racial differences within online stories narrated by individuals involved in interracial romantic relationships. A dialogic analysis of the stories (n = 76) revealed that interracial romantic partners challenged difference by positioning racial dissimilarity as problematic, contrasting differences with partner similarities, devaluing difference in the evaluation of relational success, and erasing difference or refuting an interracial relational identity altogether. The marginalization of difference in contrast to the dominance of similarity in individuals’ talk suggests that interracial partners participate in a great deal of discursive work to legitimize their relationships.
The aim of this study was to test a specific model according to which representations of sexuality (sexual motivation, sexual satisfaction, sexual anxiety, and fear of sex) act as mediators between attachment tendencies and sexual activities (frequency of dyadic and solitary sexual activity and frequency of sexual desire). A community sample of men and women (N = 490; 25–45 years) engaged in an ongoing couple relationship completed questionnaires related to the study variables. After age, duration of relationship, and marital satisfaction were controlled for, the main results showed that (a) in women, higher attachment anxiety was predictive of a higher frequency of dyadic sex and desire for sex; avoidance was predictive of a lower sexual desire; (b) in men, attachment avoidance was predictive of a lower frequency of dyadic sex and desire for sex and of a higher frequency of solitary activity; and (c) most of these effects were indirect and mediated through representations; the paths linking avoidance to sexual activities went mainly through lower positive representations in both women and men (sexual motivation and satisfaction), whereas the paths for anxiety went through a higher negative representation in men (sexual anxiety) and through a higher positive representation in women (sexual motivation). These results were consistent with the deactivation and hyperactivation strategies described for avoidant and anxious tendencies, respectively. However, several suppressor effects were observed, highlighting complex mediational paths. Finally, structural invariance showed that the links between attachment and sexual activities were mediated by representations for both women and men.
The present investigation replicates O’Connor and Rosenblood’s (1996) experience sampling study of the homeostatic regulation of social interaction and addresses the statistical limitations of the original study. Using community (N = 62) and student (N = 54) samples, multilevel model results indicated that desire to be alone reduces future likelihood of social interaction (N = 2722), which replicates the original study’s findings. Results suggest that social interaction is regulated within each day; yesterday’s desire for contact is unassociated with today’s interaction frequency. Individuals’ optimal social interaction state changed from no-contact desired to contact desired over the day, but results did not support the original study’s claim regarding social satiation. Future directions for the study of social interaction regulation are discussed.
People’s attitudes, social circumstances, and personalities can change over time. What might anticipating change in oneself and in one’s partner mean for romantic relationships? Two studies showed that expecting congruency in change for the self and the partner was linked to better relationship quality. While anticipating change in either partner by itself was associated with perceiving personal growth, individual-level change was only positively linked to relationship appraisals if both partners were expected to change in similar ways. Expecting a future in which both partners change—or both partners stay the same—facilitated higher current (Studies 1 and 2) and future (Study 2) relationship quality and stability compared to expecting a future in which only one of the partners changes.
Beck and Clark (2009) found self-report evidence that adults are more likely to offer support to a potential friend than to seek identical support from that potential friend, but that this asymmetry between offering and seeking support weakens among close friends. The present study sought to behaviorally replicate these findings in adults as well as to explore the developmental emergence of this phenomenon by examining when children would display similar patterns of offering and seeking support. Four-year-olds, 6-year-olds, 8-year-olds, and adults were given opportunities to offer or request identical support from peers. Sometimes participants were close friends; sometimes they were potential friends. The findings for adults’ support behaviors replicated previous self-report findings. Adults were more likely to offer support than to request identical support from potential friends, whereas adults were just as likely to request support as they were to offer support to close friends; 8-year-olds showed a similar pattern of behaviors. However, 4- and 6-year-olds did not distinguish between potential and close friends; they were just as likely to request support as they were to offer support to both potential and close friends. The discussion highlights the importance of understanding how these support processes unfold in new, developing relationships compared to in close, established relationships, as well as of understanding when these processes might emerge during childhood.
Verbal versus nonverbal primacy is a central assertion in interpersonal communication. This study developed an analytical and theoretical framework to assess which of these two channels gains preference, during an exploration of children’s response to their parents’ incongruent communication. Incongruence is conceptualized as a discrepancy or contradiction between verbal/nonverbal communication. Parent–child interactions (n = 160) in structured joint game sequences were filmed in their homes and analyzed using a mixed multivariant design. The study expanded the theory by analyzing a wide range of social and situational contexts. The findings delineated the contexts for nonverbal primacy, verbal primacy, and reciprocal incongruence. The presented framework advanced composite theoretical accounts into a set of conclusions for verbal versus nonverbal primacy.
Social perspective taking (SPT; i.e., the social-cognitive process of inferring another person’s thoughts and feelings) is commonly thought to be essential for successful social relationships, yet the bulk of past work on the development of SPT does not consider youths’ tendency to engage in SPT in the context of their close relationships. The current study of adolescents (ages 12–17, N = 158) helps move the field forward by distinguishing between adolescents’ SPT ability (i.e., whether they are developmentally capable of SPT) and their tendency to apply this ability in their actual social relationships, namely, friendships, and considering the roles of gender and age. Results indicate that SPT ability and SPT tendency are distinct, suggesting that youths do not always put to use the SPT skills that they possess. Girls scored higher than boys on both SPT ability and SPT tendency. Boys and girls had significant gains in SPT ability across adolescence. Surprisingly, however, boys’ SPT tendency decreased from early to later adolescence, indicating that older boys tend to engage in less SPT in their friendships despite increasing ability to do so. This is worrisome given the importance of SPT in promoting high-quality relationships. Importantly, gender role ideology predicted this tendency in boys, such that boys with more stereotypical gender beliefs tended to engage in less SPT with their friends. Thus, the current findings point to the importance of going beyond mean-level gender differences to consider gendered beliefs and suggest that interventions aimed at promoting egalitarian views may help foster SPT and successful friendships among boys.
The current study examined the distinctive gender-related expressions of adolescent romantic competence and patterns of maternal and paternal attitudes toward daughters’ and sons’ romantic involvements. Employing a qualitative approach, an in-depth interview assessing romantic competence was given to 69 Israeli adolescents (37 boys) ranging in age from 15 to 18 years, M = 16.74 (SD = .81). In addition, parents were interviewed regarding their attitudes toward their adolescents’ romantic involvements. Findings indicated that girls exhibited greater romantic maturity and their accounts of romantic involvements were more coherent, compared to boys. Romantic agency did not differ across gender. Mothers and fathers reported similar levels of supportive attitude toward offspring’s romantic involvement. However, in depth reading of parents’ motives suggested that fathers had a supportive attitude toward their sons’ romantic and sexual experimentation, while mothers’ supportive attitude was aimed at enhancing romantic intimacy in both genders. In addition, mothers were found to have a more protective attitude toward their daughters than toward their sons. Examining associations between parental attitudes and adolescent romantic competence showed that maternal, not paternal, supportive attitude was associated with greater romantic competence in both genders. In addition, maternal protective attitude was associated with girls’ involvement in more stable relationships, while fathers’ protective attitude was adversely associated with daughters’ romantic agency. Findings suggest that the attitudes of both parents reflect, to some extent, the more traditional scripts of gender relationships.
Although social support is typically associated with a number of health benefits, for some individuals support worsens outcomes, likely because receiving support can undermine feelings of competence. Some have argued that invisible support (i.e., support that recipients do not recognize as help) can reduce negative support-related health consequences (Bolger, Zuckerman, & Kessler, 2000); still, the physiological benefits of invisible support have yet to be established and likely differ as a function of self-efficacy. The purpose of this study was to investigate how visibility of support and self-efficacy interact to affect the cortisol reactivity of a support recipient. In a 2 (self-efficacy: high vs. low) x 2 (support visibility: visible vs. invisible) between-subjects, experimental design, 74 undergraduate students were primed for either high or low self-efficacy using false feedback. Participants then received either visible or invisible support from a confederate while preparing a speech as part of the Trier Social Stress Task (Kirschbaum, Pirke, & Hellhammer, 1993). A series of repeated measures analyses of variance revealed that individuals primed to have high self-efficacy experienced cortisol increases in response to the speech task when they received visible support but not invisible support. By contrast, individuals primed to have low self-efficacy experienced increased cortisol when they received invisible support but not visible support. This research suggests that although invisible support can effectively buffer stress, it is not always the best support strategy.
The present study investigated the relations among physical attractiveness and inter- and intrasexual mate retention tactics used by individuals in romantic relationships. Seventy-three undergraduate romantic dyads were photographed and completed a questionnaire about their mate retention tactics. Independent judges rated the photographs for physical attractiveness. Actor–partner interdependence models indicated that (a) partner’s physical attractiveness was positively associated with the individual’s own use of mate retention behavior, (b) an individual’s own level of physical attractiveness was not related to the individual’s own use of mate retention behavior, however, (c) there was a dissimilarity effect for predicting mate retention behaviors. Specifically, participants who were less physically attractive and were in romantic relationships with physically attractive partners employed more intrasexual retention tactics.
We assessed whether people express more prejudice and discrimination toward mixed-weight couples (i.e., romantic partners with dissimilar body mass indexes [BMIs]) than matched-weight couples. In Study 1, people rated mixed-weight couples less favorably than matched-weight couples. In Study 2, people acted as matchmakers; they chose to pair potential relationship partners on the basis of similar BMI and body size. Mixed-weight couples were perceived as poorer matches than matched-weight couples. In Study 3, people offered advice to a person dating a mixed-weight or matched-weight partner. Men and women dating a mixed-weight, rather than matched-weight, partner were advised to go on less active, public, and expensive dates, display less physical affection, and delay introductions to close others. In Study 4, perceived relational inequity, prejudice toward mixed-status relationships, in general, and system justification motives moderated mixed-weight prejudice. Implications for couples are discussed.
Experiences of social exclusion, including ostracism and rejection, can last anywhere from a few seconds to many years. Most research focused on short-term social exclusion, whereas virtually no empirical work has investigated the experiences of long-term social exclusion. Williams theorized that prolonged experiences of social exclusion (i.e., ostracism) would cause individuals to pass from the reflexive and reflective stages to the resignation stage characterized by the inability to recover threatened psychological needs and feelings of alienation, unworthiness, helplessness, and depression. Across two studies, we explored this prediction—and, in light of pain overlap theories, considered the possibility that chronic exclusion and chronic pain induce common psychological responses. Study 1 consisted of a quasi-experimental study involving five groups of participants: (1) those with chronic experiences of social exclusion (n = 82), (2) those with chronic physical pain (n = 82), (3) those with chronic hypertension (n = 69), (4) those with chronic kidney disease (n = 60), and (5) a group of healthy people (n = 83). Participants filled out a questionnaire including measures of need threat, negative emotions, and the four key outcomes linked to the resignation stage (i.e., alienation, unworthiness, helplessness, and depression). Although our data showed little evidence to support the psychological overlap between chronic exclusion and chronic physical pain, the results suggested that chronic experiences of social exclusion were associated with higher levels of negative emotions and resignation stage outcomes compared to participants in all the other groups. Furthermore, we found that threatened psychological needs mediated the effect of social exclusion on the resignation stage outcomes. Study 2 tested, but found no support for, the possibility that acute experiences of social exclusion could increase the resignation stage outcomes. Overall, our research indicates that when people are exposed to short-term exclusion, they recover their threatened psychological needs. However, when enduring chronic social exclusion, they do not, and enter the resignation stage.
Understanding how people turn episodes in time into subjectively meaningful narratives can shed light on adaptive meaning-making processes. Bridging attachment theory and narrative meaning making may elucidate how individuals distinctively narrate highly stressful and traumatic memories and whether such expression matters for psychological health. Single trauma narratives from 224 college participants were coded along dimensions of attachment theory, exploration and support seeking. Attachment style, stress-related growth, and event-related stress were also measured. Narrative exploration and support seeking were predictors of growth and stress, respectively, after controlling for personality traits and attachment. Importantly, we showed attachment moderates the relationship between narrative meaning making and psychological growth and stress. The relation between higher narrative exploration and increased growth levels was weaker for more avoidantly attached individuals, while the relation between lower narrative support seeking and increased stress levels was stronger for more anxiously attached individuals. Our findings indicate narrative processes matter for psychological health and may be utilized to different degrees depending on the narrator’s attachment style.
Using data from individuals disclosing a personally relevant and problematic event to either a stranger (N = 151) or friend (N = 119), this study explored whether emotion and cognitive mechanism words produced by the discloser and the language style matching (LSM) of interlocutors influenced the reappraisal process necessary to feel better. Results showed that positive emotion words and LSM influenced reported emotional improvement through the mechanism of cognitive reappraisal (CR). This model was supported for friends and strangers who also did not appreciably differ with respect to language use or style matching. The discussion highlights the role of CR as well as the potential for other emotion regulation strategies in the conversational coping process.
Romantic relationships are situated within broader cultural and family contexts, and this may be particularly salient to those in intergroup relationships. This study examined variations in young adults’ experiences with intercultural romantic relationships by ethnicity and immigrant generation. A sample of ethnically diverse young adults (N = 628; Asian, Latino, and European background) reported on self and parent attitudes toward dating outside of one’s own culture, own current dating status, and disapproval and conflict with parents over current and past dating status. Analyses revealed three key findings. First, intercultural relationships were evenly distributed across ethnic and immigrant generation groups. Second, participants of Asian background perceived greater attitudinal discrepancies with their parents toward intercultural dating than did participants of Latino and European background and were more likely to report intercultural dating conflict with their parents than Latino participants. Third, first-generation and second-generation participants were more likely to report intercultural dating conflict with parents than third-generation participants. Altogether, the findings show the importance of (a) incorporating culture into the conceptualization of intergroup relationships, particularly for ethnic minority and recent immigrant groups, and (b) considering the family context of intercultural dating relationships. Implications for the study of intergroup romantic relationships are discussed.
Chronic attachment insecurity can affect the outlook people have on relationships. This research examines how attachment insecurity relates to perceived importance of various features in a romantic relationship (e.g., intimacy, independence). Consistent with predictions, the results from Studies 1–3 (N 1 = 53, N 2 = 226, N 3 = 196) revealed that greater attachment anxiety was associated with ranking intimacy higher in importance and independence lower, whereas attachment avoidance was associated with ranking independence higher, intimacy, and trust lower. Study 4 (N 4 = 175) further showed that insecure participants recognized that some of their priorities are unique to themselves and not shared by others. Additionally, they did not perceive their current relationships as having more of the relational features they prioritized. Insecure individuals thus have unique relational priorities, which may direct their romantic judgments and decisions.
The parent–child relationship normally experiences a significant change during the transition from adolescence to adulthood. However, there is much left to understand about how this transition affects and is affected by the communication between parents and emerging adults. A survey conducted among 490 Hong Kong university students examined their self-disclosure to their parents as an interpersonal process centered on perceived parental responsiveness and the role of separation–individuation in this self-disclosure process. The results support the idea that perceived parental responsiveness mediates the link between self-disclosure and relationship quality in the context of parent–child relationships. Dysfunctional independence predicts less self-disclosure, perceptions of less parental responsiveness, and poorer parent–child relationship quality. Significant gender differences were found on dysfunctional independence, self-disclosure, perceived parental responsiveness, and parent–child relationship quality. Young women with dysfunctional dependence disclosed less positive information, perhaps driven by an excessive need for attention and care.
Advancements in antiretroviral treatment and a greater access to medication have contributed to an increased life expectancy for people who live with HIV/AIDS. As a result, new psychosocial goals in the treatment of HIV, such as improving the quality of life and levels of well-being of those who are infected, have become increasingly relevant. Since men who have sex with men, particularly those who identify as gay and bisexual, continue to be a group of primary concern within the HIV-affected population, new interventions to help them reach the aforementioned goals must be developed. Considering HIV stigma represents a paramount psychosocial threat for individual’s psychological and physical well-being, the authors embrace a resilience-oriented perspective and propose a relational approach to helping gay and bisexual men living with HIV/AIDS better face social stigma. Through an integrative literature review that discusses scholarly works published in the past 15 years on the topics of HIV stigma, relationship quality, and interventions with couples dealing with chronic illness, the authors suggest several couple-oriented interventions as promising strategies to help gay and bisexual men living with HIV/AIDS cope with the social stigma. Future directions in research and plausible components for interventions with these HIV-affected male couples are also discussed.
A large number of children around the world are currently living in residential children’s homes and a central figure in those settings is the caregiver. The relationship children establish with their temporary caregivers can be a crucial factor in their lives. However, little research has been conducted with caregivers working in institutional settings regarding their experience and the relationship they establish with the children they care for. This article presents the results of a qualitative study conducted with 43 caregivers working in eight different residential children’s homes in Chile. The information was gathered through focus groups, and thematic analysis was conducted. The results show that caregivers report their experience of work and their relationship with children very positively and that this is characterized by their emotional involvement with children. This perspective appears to differ from that observed in large institutions in Europe, where there is some evidence that a more impersonal approach is predominant. However, it is acknowledged that this is based on caregiver perceptions which may or may not reflect cultural variations. The conclusion highlights the potential positive impact that caregivers can have on children’s lives, alongside some factors that negatively affect caregivers’ work, which could inform policy and procedures in order to provide better care for these children who (for various reasons) remain in residential care rather than family-based care.
This study investigates the association between individual differences in testosterone and communication after sexual activity. Two hundred and fifty-three young adult participants (78% women, M age = 21 years, 73% White) provided saliva samples (later assayed for testosterone) and subsequently, over a 2-week period, completed an online diary after each time they engaged in sexual activity. Individual differences in testosterone levels were inversely associated with perceived benefits of, and positively associated with perceived risks of, disclosing thoughts and feelings to one’s partner after sexual activity. When testosterone levels were higher, post sex disclosures were less intentional and less positive, and these associations were mediated by risk–benefit assessments. An interaction between testosterone and orgasm revealed that higher testosterone levels were associated with more negative post sex disclosures for those who did not orgasm, but not for those who experienced orgasm. This finding suggests that high testosterone/no orgasm individuals may be the least likely to experience the beneficial effects of post sex communication. Similar results were found both when biological sex was controlled for and when analyses were conducted separately for women and men. Implications for a biosocial model of post sex behavior and communication are discussed.
Engaging in romantic relationships at work, especially with one’s superiors (i.e., hierarchical workplace romance; [HWR]), has generally been shown to negatively impact the participants involved. However, less attention has focused on its impact on the career advancement of lower status romance participants and when such an impact is exacerbated. Two experiments show that third-party evaluators were less likely to promote (Study 1) and select lower status HWR participants for training opportunities (Study 2) than their counterparts not in an HWR. Moreover, the negative career ramification of an HWR was stronger for men romantically involved with their female superiors than women with their male superiors (Study 2). This research highlights the need for organizational members to be aware of biases associated with HWR and gender role–based status expectations because past achievements may be discounted for lower status HWR participants, especially men.
Romantic beliefs (e.g., love at first sight and soul mates) are common among young people, however, these beliefs are thought to create unrealistic expectations for romantic relationships. The current study assessed the romantic beliefs, romantic expectations, and relationship outcomes (satisfaction and commitment) of 270 young adults (aged 18–28 years) who were involved in dating relationships. Romantic beliefs were associated with greater satisfaction and commitment, whereas unmet romantic expectations were associated with lower satisfaction and commitment. Of note, the endorsement of romantic beliefs was not linked to unmet expectations. Thus, romantic beliefs do not appear to foster false or unobtainable expectations for romantic relationships, and the concerns regarding the endorsement of these beliefs may be misplaced. Individual differences (age, gender, and relationship experience) did not predict romantic beliefs or expectations. The results are discussed with regard to implications for promoting relationship commitment and satisfaction.
Abundant evidence has demonstrated a relationship between adult attachment and the experience of one’s own pain. However, few studies have investigated the associations between adult attachment and perception of others’ pain. The current studies examined the effects of attachment style and security priming on the perception of others’ pain. In Study 1, we explored the influence of avoidant and anxious attachment styles on the perception of pain in pictures representing pain or no pain. The results indicated that individuals high on anxiety and low on avoidance (i.e., preoccupied attachment style) reported more pain intensity and unpleasantness for painful pictures; individuals high on both anxiety and avoidance (i.e., fearful attachment style) reported less pain intensity for painful pictures. In Study 2, we examined the effects of security priming and attachment style on the perception of pain in pictures representing pain or no pain by adopting a security priming paradigm. The results suggested that security priming attenuated perceived pain intensity for painful pictures for individuals with high attachment anxiety. In Study 3, we used another well-validated security priming paradigm; results indicated that security priming reduced perceived pain intensity for pain pictures among individuals high on anxiety and low on avoidance (i.e., preoccupied attachment style) but increased perceived pain intensity for painful pictures among individuals high on both anxiety and avoidance (i.e., fearful attachment style). Directions for future research, clinical implications, and limitations of the present studies are discussed.
Although the objectification of women is pervasive, it has not been studied extensively in the context of romantic relationships. This is a curious oversight, given that physical appearance is considered a prominent factor in romantic attraction and conceptualizations of objectification tend to involve an exaggerated emphasis on physical appearance. Thus, objectification theory may have interesting implications for romantic relationships. Women who enjoy sexualization may be more likely to have a partner who objectifies them, which could have negative implications for the relationship, as objectification research has generally found that the experience of objectification has negative consequences for women. Across three studies of heterosexual women in relationships (N = 114, N = 196, and N = 208), results showed that those who enjoyed sexualization tended to feel more objectified by their partner, which in turn related to lowered relationship satisfaction. These findings persisted even when controlling for perceptions of partner’s sexual desire, self-objectification, and objectification from strangers. Furthermore, Study 3 provides preliminary evidence that self-objectification may be a precursor to this mediation in that self-objectification was associated with higher enjoyment of sexualization, which was associated with higher partner-objectification, which in turn was associated with lower relationship satisfaction. This research sheds light on how the objectification of women operates within the context of a heterosexual romantic relationship.
Loneliness is not merely an unpleasant experience but is harmful for older adults’ health and well-being as well. While marriage buffers against loneliness in later life, even married adults experience loneliness, and aspects of adults’ marriages may either protect against or actually foster loneliness among spouses. The current study analyzed dyadic data from 1,114 opposite-sex married Irish couples who participated in the initial wave of The Irish Longitudinal Study on Ageing (2009–2011) in order to extend findings of two prior dyadic studies of marital quality and loneliness in the U.S. to older married couples in Ireland and to directly compare two theoretical and methodological frameworks used by these studies to explain associations between husbands’ and wives’ reports of marital quality and loneliness in later life. Results revealed that both spouses’ perceptions of positive and negative marital quality were significantly related with husbands’ and wives’ loneliness and that spouses’ reports of loneliness were significantly related with one another. Findings also indicated that associations between marital quality and loneliness were similar for Irish and American couples in later life. Comparison of differing modeling strategies suggested that emotional contagion may serve as a pathway for dyadic partner effects.
The present study utilizes the relational turbulence model (RTM) to illuminate adult children’s experiences of relational uncertainty and interference from partners following late-life parental divorce (LLPD). In-depth, semi-structured interviews with 25 adult children who had experienced parental divorce later in life revealed that adult children grappled with four broad themes of relational uncertainty: (a) parent–adult child relationship uncertainty, (b) parent as individual uncertainty, (c) divorce-related uncertainty, and (d) being a family uncertainty. Interference from partners was couched within adult children’s experiences of feeling caught and manifested as (a) disruptions to normative developmental stressors and (b) disruptions to maintaining family ties. The discussion highlights the theoretical implications of our results for the RTM and the larger divorce literature, along with practical recommendations to assist those grappling with LLPD.
This study investigated the effects of dispositional and experimentally induced perspective-taking (PT) on physiological attunement between romantic partners during a conflict resolution task. Young adult couples (N = 103 dyads) rated their trait PT 1 week prior to participating in a conflict resolution session with their romantic partner. Immediately before the conflict task, participants were given one of the following three instructions: to take their partner’s perspective (PT condition), to approach the conflict mindfully (mindfulness condition), or to focus on their own perspective regarding the conflict (control condition). Participants provided four saliva samples over the course of the laboratory session, and the samples were assayed for alpha-amylase to measure autonomic nervous system activity. Multilevel modeling results revealed that couples in the PT condition displayed greater autonomic attunement over the course of the conflict session compared to those in the other conditions. In addition, female partners’ dispositional PT enhanced the effect of the PT induction on couples’ attunement. Furthermore, secondary analyses provided support for the beneficial role of autonomic attunement. Specifically, attunement was decreased by negative conflict behaviors and predicted increased post-conflict negative affect in females. Implications for dyadic functioning and intervention are discussed.
The current study integrated constructs from the fields of relationship science (i.e., similarity and familiarity) and intergroup research (i.e., racial ideologies, particularly color-blind racial ideology and multiculturalism) to explore interracial romantic attraction. Using a person-perception design, 124 Black (n = 62) and White (n =62) heterosexual college men indicated their romantic attraction to the dating profiles of three Black and three White women. Results from analyses consistent with a linear mixed-model approach supported most of the hypotheses, including participants in general were more attracted to women of the same race and that greater endorsement of multicultural ideological beliefs was associated with increased interracial attraction. For White men, greater endorsement of color-blind racial ideology was predictive of a decrease in interracial romantic attraction as hypothesized. Contrary to the hypotheses, increased interracial contact for Black men was associated with an increase in same race attraction. Results are discussed in the context of existing literature, and important next steps are also discussed.
Using a sample of 143 heterosexual, ethnically diverse couples, we explored the consequences of individuals’ depressive symptomology and excessive reassurance seeking (ERS) for (a) the efforts they and their partners make to maintain their relationship and (b) the satisfaction reported by each relational party. Data were analyzed using an extension of the actor–partner interdependence model. We found actor effects of depression on satisfaction and on relationship maintenance behavior. We also detected significant actor effects of ERS on relationship maintenance behavior. There was inconsistent evidence of partner effects and of the predicted indirect effects. Results suggest that depression and the tendency to engage in ERS may exert countervailing influences on the enactment of relationship maintenance: For both men and women, depression was a negative predictor of self-reported relationship maintenance, whereas ERS was a positive predictor. We suggest that ERS could be considered a form of relationship maintenance in its own right.
Family and relationship researchers ask research questions at the dyadic- or family level, yet analyses are often conducted at the individual level. We review theoretical perspectives relative to studying families and dyads and note how they are connected with dyadic analysis techniques. We note differences in theoretical assumptions underlying the actor–partner interdependence model, the common fate model (CFM), and hybrid models that combine features of both and distinguish between the types of questions each addresses. Using third grade, sixth grade, and age 15 data from the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development study of Early Child Care and Youth Development (N = 732), we illustrate the value of using CFM and hybrid models to explore how family chaos is associated with couple conflict resolution and child behavior problems. Dyadic- and family-level analyses may offer additional insight into family functioning, and we provide recommendations for the use of CFM in furthering this line of inquiry.
We evaluated the extent to which military service members’ and their significant others’ coping strategies (i.e., individual use of emotion expression and avoidance) were independently associated with their own—and each other’s—psychological health during reintegration using an actor–partner interdependence model. We simultaneously evaluated actor associations (e.g., associations between service members’ own coping and psychological health) and partner associations (e.g., associations between service members’ coping and their significant others’ psychological health) with a sample of 175 National Guard couples who recently experienced deployment. We further evaluated (1) whether there were interactive associations among partners’ coping strategies and (2) whether service members’ level of combat exposure moderated any of these associations. Results indicated that, for both service members and significant others, psychological health was positively associated with one’s own emotion expression and negatively associated with one’s own avoidance. Moreover, there was a significant partner association between service members’ psychological health and their significant others’ emotion expression but only in the context of high combat exposure. Implications for intervention and prevention efforts are discussed.
Based on maternity certainty and paternity uncertainty, one can predict that individuals will channel investment in their kin according to more genetically certain investment options. According to the preferential investment in more certain kin theory, if aunts and uncles have the option to invest in either their sisters’ or their brothers’ children they would prefer to invest in their sisters’ children. However, this question has not been previously explored in contemporary societies with nationally representative data from two generations of aunts and uncles. In our study, we have used data gathered in the Generational Transmissions in Finland project in 2012. The respondents represent older adults (born between 1945 and 1950, n = 1,604) and younger adults (born between 1962 and 1993, n = 1,159). We find that when aunts and uncles have nieces and nephews via both sisters and brothers, they have more contacts with their sisters’ children than their brothers’ children. Thus, the results are in accordance with the preferential investment theory.
The current study investigated whether biological sensitivity to emotional information moderates the link between attachment anxiety/avoidance and depressive symptoms. Sixty children (9–12 years old) completed questionnaires on attachment and depressive symptoms. Skin conductance level (SCL) was measured across three conditions: an emotionally neutral baseline condition, a negative mood induction condition, and a positive mood induction condition. SCL variability (SCLV) was calculated as the intraindividual variation across these conditions expressing the extent to which children are biologically sensitive to positive and negative emotional information. Results showed that SCLV moderated the association between depressive symptoms and attachment anxiety. Attachment anxiety was only linked with depressive symptoms when children showed more SCLV, suggesting that attachment anxiety is only a risk factor for children who are biologically sensitive to respond to emotional information. SCLV did not moderate the association between depressive symptoms and attachment avoidance. Instead, a significant correlation was found between attachment avoidance and SCLV, which replicated previous research and might be caused by more avoidantly attached children’s unsuccessful attempts to suppress emotional reactions.
Outperforming others may be an ambivalent experience, simultaneously evoking pride and discomfort. Two experiments examined the role of deservingness in reactions to being an upward comparison target. Study 1 took place online and experimentally manipulated deservingness by modifying a self-report measure of Sensitivity about Being the Target of a Threatening Upward Comparison (STTUC). Participants predicted more distress and less positive affect under conditions of undeserved (vs. deserved) success; several individual difference variables moderated these effects. Study 2 systematically varied a confederate’s effort to manipulate the perceived deservingness of an outperformed person. Participants were especially likely to downplay their score in the presence of a confederate who appeared to work hard on a task but nevertheless performed poorly. Collectively, findings suggest that people respond most strongly to STTUC when a mismatch exists between deservingness and outcomes.
The consequences of risky sexual behaviors are a serious health concern. We hypothesized that the transitional instability that occurs as a part of typical developmental changes in emerging adulthood would be positively associated with sexual risk taking. A survey of emerging adults showed that the instability–sexual risk-taking association was positive and significant as predicted. Moreover, psychological distress (depression and loneliness) and dysfunctional drinking motivations (drinking to ease emotional pain or to gain peer acceptance) moderated and intensified the association between instability and sexual risk taking. Implications for future research with instability and risk-taking behaviors in emerging adulthood are discussed.
According to theory, maternal sensitivity should be associated with attachment security in middle childhood. We measure two aspects of maternal sensitivity—affective understanding, a component of parental mentalization, and affective synchrony, a component of parental empathy. We tested our hypotheses within a diverse sample of school-aged children (48.6% female, M age = 10.27, SD age = 1.09) and their mothers (N = 112 dyads) at baseline and after a standardized laboratory-based stressor in which children worked on unsolvable puzzles while their mothers watched. Results revealed no significant associations at baseline, but lower maternal attachment avoidance and greater child attachment security were associated with greater affective understanding and greater affective synchrony after the stressor task.
Romantic relationship dissolution is among the most stressful events that a person can experience. However, variability exists in the experience of a breakup and its impact on mental health. This study employed a mixed methods approach to understand how newly single people make meaning of significant events in their previous relationships through narrative and the resulting implications for their mental health. Participants were 146 men and women who became single during the course of a 4-wave longitudinal study of relationships and well-being. When asked to write narratives of the most significant event in their prior relationships, participants most frequently wrote about turning points, low points, and decision events. Narratives were not exclusively focused on the breakup itself. Narrative content was predictive of an adaptive resolution of significant events in prior relationships—via positive affective tone of narrative endings—which was in turn predictive of depression in the year after breaking up with a partner. Findings suggest that how people make meaning of events in prior relationships through narrative explain important individual differences in mental health in singlehood. Implications for relationship science, as well as counseling and clinical interventions, are discussed.
Avoidance in adults is related to many negative aspects of caregiving and parenting. This was examined in a simulated parenting experience of 145 students who raised a virtual child from birth to age 19 using the website MyVirtualChild©. Avoidance and anxiety within adult relationships were assessed using the Experiences in Close Relationships–Relationship Structures questionnaire before and after this experience, and caregiver attitudes of positive feelings, perceptions of the child’s security, and willingness to serve as an attachment figure were assessed after the experience. As predicted, avoidance and anxiety were negatively related to caregiver attitudes, with avoidance accounting for these relations. These results support the negative impact of avoidance on caregiver attitudes, even when the child is raised in Cyberspace.
We analyze the Online College Social Life Survey, a survey collected between 2005 and 2011 of students (N = 22,454) at 22 U.S. colleges and universities and estimate whether students hooked up, dated, formed long-term romantic relationships, or did not form relationships while in college and their desire for these relationship opportunities. Students have equal rates of hooking up and dating. Men are more likely than women to have dated and hooked up and less likely to have formed a long-term relationship, although they are more likely to wish there were more opportunities to form long-term relationships. An examination of intimate partnering by sexual orientation, race, religious attendance, and Greek culture reveals distinct pattern that can be explained by cultural norms.
Divorced individuals offer explanations for why their relationship ended, yet little is known about the development of these problems during the relationship. Problems that lead to divorce may exist at the beginning of the marriage (enduring dynamics model) or may develop over time (emergent distress model). We asked 40 divorced individuals about the reasons for their divorce and compared the development of problems that did and did not contribute to their divorce over the first few years of their marriage. Results support an emergent distress model for wives as they saw problems that lead to divorce increasing over time. Results for husbands indicated that they were less attuned to problems overall, suggesting that wives are the bellwether for relationship problems.
The purpose of this study was to investigate accuracy and bias effects in partners’ reports and perceptions of diet- and exercise-related social control in conjunction with their relationship satisfaction. Actor–partner interdependence mediation models (APIMeM) were used to examine the reports of diet- and exercise-related social control in 192 couples. In line with the accuracy and bias framework, we found that couples are accurate and biased with regard to their social control attempts and that accuracy and bias were associated with relationship satisfaction for positive social control. Individuals also reported greater relationship satisfaction when they reported using less negative social control and when they perceived more positive social control from their partners. These findings provide corroboration for self-reports of social influence in close relationships while simultaneously demonstrating bias in perceptions of partners’ social control and highlighting concurrent associations with people’s relationship satisfaction.
Narcissists are attracted to highly positive, rather than communal, romantic partners, but the literature has not examined how obtaining these desired traits affects relationship satisfaction. A total of 206 participants completed a survey assessing narcissism and ideal partner standards. A subset of 143 romantically involved participants completed assessments of their current partners and relationships. Narcissism was positively associated with extrinsic (attractive and successful) ideal standards and was negatively associated with intrinsic standards (warmth and intimacy) when controlling for extrinsic ideals. Relationships meeting extrinsic ideals were more satisfying for narcissists, but not non-narcissists. Relationships meeting intrinsic ideals were more satisfying for all participants, especially those low in narcissism. The effect for extrinsic traits was driven by Entitlement/Exploitativeness and Grandiose Exhibitionism, and the effect for intrinsic traits was driven by Entitlement/Exploitativeness.
This study experimentally tested whether individuals have a tendency to associate attractive voices with attractive faces and, alternately, unattractive voices with unattractive faces. Participants viewed pairings of facial photographs of attractive and unattractive individuals and had listened to attractive and unattractive voice samples and were asked to indicate which facial picture they thought was more likely to be the speaker of the voice heard. Results showed that there was an overall tendency to associate attractive voices with attractive faces and unattractive voices with unattractive faces, suggesting that a "what-sounds-beautiful-looks-beautiful" stereotype exists. Interestingly, there was an even stronger propensity to pair unattractive voices to unattractive faces than for the attractive voice–face matching.
The present study explores how personal network members manage information related to hurtful experiences. The study uses communication privacy management (CPM) theory as the theoretical framework for a theme analysis of responses of disclosers of hurtful experiences and confidants regarding how they manage information related to a hurtful experience. Results of the thematic analysis provide insight into the process by which people disclose a hurtful experience with a personal network member, establish rules for sharing information, manage privacy boundaries, and deal with privacy turbulence. Findings illuminate the unique challenges and circumstances present in the context of hurtful experiences. The implications for coping with a hurtful experience and extending CPM theory are discussed.
Guided by narrative theorizing, the current study investigated the content and process of telling adoption entrance narratives (AENs)—or the story of how the child was born, placed for adoption, and integrated into their family—in open adoptive families. Thematic analysis of 165 adoptive parents’ (mostly mothers) AENs revealed six emergent themes: birth parents as family, chosen parents, forever, rescue, fate, and adoption makes us family. Structural equation modeling demonstrated that adoptive mothers’ relational satisfaction with the birth parent relates to birth parent storytelling which in turn relates to adoptee–birth parent relational closeness. Findings illuminate the ways adoptive mothers incorporate birth parents into their conceptualization of family in light of cultural assumptions of "family" and become gatekeepers of family relationships.
The dyadic accuracy and bias of preadolescents’ (M = 10.13 years) perceived peer relations were examined in relation to their aggression, depressive symptoms, and peer victimization. A racially diverse sample (235 boys and 281 girls) completed peer nominations of perceived and actual peer acceptance and rejection, peer nominations of friendship and peer victimization, and a self-report measure of depressive symptoms. Teachers completed measures of aggression. With higher depressive symptoms, children were more likely to underestimate their peer acceptance and friendship. With higher aggression, children were more likely to overestimate their peer acceptance and friendship but only when they experienced low levels of peer victimization. These findings highlight distinct patterns of dyadic bias associated with preadolescent’s depressive symptoms and aggressive behavior.
The purpose of this study was to explore the effects of relationship status (i.e., cohabiting or married), gender, and parental status on perceptions about intimate partner obligations. In vignettes depicting various aspects of couple relationships, we measured the effects of relationship status, gender, and parental status on partner obligations, obtaining quantitative and qualitative data. Married couples were perceived to have greater obligations to one another than cohabitors when issues involved potential relationship transitions. Women were perceived to be more obligated than men to support a partner's career change. Open-ended responses indicated that marriage is an important factor in shaping perceived intimate partner obligations, but love, commitment, and intimacy also are important in motivating relationship-enhancing behaviors.
Although it is clear that early adolescents pursue and establish romantic relationships, less is known about the hallmarks of these pairings, even though they are linked to current and future close relationships. Based on adolescent identity formation and identity theory, we used theoretical concepts of roles, role expectations, and role enactments to inform our study. We conducted a series of same-sex and same-age focus groups with sixth and eighth graders and analyzed their responses using a grounded theory approach. We found that early adolescent romantic role enactments could be aggregated into two broad types of experiences. On the one hand, some youth were uncomfortable with interacting with a romantic partner. They often relied on texting as opposed to face-to-face interactions with partners. On the other hand, other early adolescents were more at ease engaging in romantic roles. They spent time interacting with their partners, shared personal information with each other, were physically affectionate, and created boundaries that defined their romantic relationships as different from other close relationships. The findings support our assertion that when early adolescents enact the new role of "romantic partner," and develop a personal set of role expectations for this role, it requires learning, direct experience, and maturation before they can successfully engage in this role.
This study was conducted to examine the association between marital adjustment and psychological distress in a large, probability sample of married adults in Japan (N = 710) from the Midlife Development in Japan study. Results indicate that positive and negative dimensions of marital adjustment were significantly associated with dimensional and categorical measures of psychological distress. Furthermore, the associations between marital adjustment and psychological distress remained significant when statistically controlling for neuroticism, quality of friend and family relationships, and demographic variables. These results demonstrate that the well-established association between marital adjustment and psychological distress found in European American countries is also found in Japan. Findings support continued research on marital functioning and psychological distress in East Asian countries.
Adolescents in stepfamilies use different labels when describing their stepfather, such as "stepfather" or "mother’s husband." These labels may reflect youths’ sense of family identity or dynamics. The current study uses nationally representative data (Add Health) on a sample of adolescents living with their mothers and a married stepfather (n = 1192) to examine factors that may be associated with how teens describe their stepfather and changes in this labeling over a year. Findings suggest that closeness with nonresident fathers increases the likelihood that teens avoid the stepfather label, while closeness with mothers increases the likelihood that they adopt the label. Closeness with their stepfather was not associated with how they label him. Other characteristics of the stepfamily are also important predictors of stepfather labeling.
We examined whether seven relational constructs (satisfaction, commitment, closeness, conflict, ambivalence, maintenance, and love) showed significant within-person residual variance over time (variability), whether couple members were similar in their variability (covariation), and whether variability and covariation differed by relationship length. We used dyadic daily diary data from 157 couples together from 2 months to 44 years. Each relational construct significantly varied within person from day to day, and couple members significantly covaried. Longer term couples generally experienced less variability than newer couples. We also found that for satisfaction, closeness, ambivalence, and love, couple covariation decreased in longer relationships. We discuss how these findings can be used to help individuals work to maintain greater stability in their feelings about the relationship.
The current study used multiple informants to examine the impact of relationship experiences with parents and romantic partners on relational security among early adolescent girls, over a 1-year period. Seventy-one early adolescent girls and their primary caregivers participated at Time 1 and 1 year later (Time 2). Findings suggest that both parental and romantic relationship experiences impact relational security during early adolescence. The most consistent findings from the current study were the ability of romantic rejection to alter the relational security of early adolescent girls as well as the importance of parent–adolescent attachment security in predicting comfort with intimacy.
Advice is a common element of supportive interactions, but unsolicited advice can harm the advice recipient as well as the relationship between the advice recipient and the advice giver. Despite the potential negative implications of unsolicited advice, very little is known about what predicts unsolicited advice giving in personal relationships. The present studies provide an empirical test of the association between relational closeness and unsolicited advice giving. In two studies, undergraduate students and members of the general population responded to hypothetical statements of discontent from friends who were not asking for advice. Relational closeness and unsolicited advice giving were positively correlated, with participants tending to provide more unsolicited advice to friends toward whom they felt greater relational closeness. Overall, participants gave unsolicited advice to their friends at a very early stage of a supportive interaction in approximately 70% of cases. Explanations and implications for these findings were discussed.
Does women’s memory for a man’s features and verbal statements vary as a function of whether they are thinking about him as a short- versus long-term mate? Evolutionary psychology suggests that a man’s physical attributes might matter more to women seeking a short- versus a long-term mate. In a laboratory experiment, female undergraduates watched a videotaped male introducing himself after they had been encouraged to think of him as either a short- or long-term mate. Women’s memory for his features and verbal statements was then tested. Compared to women in the long-term context, women in the short-term context demonstrated better memory for his features and worse memory for his verbal statements. The implications of these findings for adaptive memory are discussed.
Individuals’ reaction tendencies in emotional situations may influence their social relationships. In two studies, we examined whether perceived similarity in emotional reaction tendencies between the self and a close other was associated with individuals’ emotional well-being. Participants rated how the self and a close other (mother in Study 1; a self-nominated close other in Study 2) would react in various situations. Individuals who perceived greater similarity between the self and the close other reported more positive affect, less negative affect, lower perceived stress, and higher life satisfaction than those who perceived less self–other similarity. Furthermore, stress exposure moderated the effects of self–other similarity on perceived stress. In summary, greater perceived similarity with one’s close others seems beneficial for social–emotional adaptation.
High-quality relationships may be protective for family caregivers. This study focuses on relationship quality categories (supportive and ambivalent) in spouse caregivers in cancer home hospice. The goals of this article are to, first, describe relationship quality categories among end-of-life caregivers and, second, test the effects of relationship quality categories on caregiver burden and distress within a stress process model. Using questionnaire data collected at entry to home hospice, we found relationship quality categories were proportionally similar to those seen in noncaregiver older adults. Relationship quality significantly predicted caregiver burden, which completely mediated the relationship between caregiver relationship quality and distress. Caregivers whose social contexts place them at risk for greater distress may benefit from increased clinical attention or intervention.
We examined the frequency with which 67 young adult females from the Southeastern U.S. discussed romantic relationship problems with their partners and their best friends, a process referred to as "relationship work" (RW). Results from data collected over two time points revealed that females engage in more frequent RW with partners than with friends and that RW with partners increases over time. Path analyses revealed early RW patterns did not predict changes in love or conflict, yet RW with partner and love were concurrently positively linked at both time points. Women reporting greater conflict reported decreases in RW with partners. Results suggest that discussing romantic challenges with one’s partner likely has a positive impact both immediately and over time.
Compassionate love is an important characteristic of healthy close relationships. However, we know little about how compassionate love is behaviorally manifested. Furthermore, compassionate love may be uniquely experienced among older couples, as age-related challenges may require adjustments by spouses in providing more care for one another. Through interviews with 63 older married couples, this exploratory study examined the behavioral component of compassionate love among older couples as reported from the recipients’ perspective. From the qualitative data analysis, 11 behavioral domains were identified, including caring for physical health and helping with household tasks. The examples varied greatly in magnitude and meaningfulness, from willingly moving around the country to fixing breakfast. Further, couples frequently highlighted acts related to their increasing age-related challenges, underscoring the importance of taking a life-span approach to the study of compassionate love. The results may be useful to further develop interventions promoting compassionate love, especially among older couples.
The investment model is one of the most influential theoretical frameworks for understanding commitment in close relationships. Nonetheless, few studies have examined commitment dynamics using within-persons designs. In addition, there have been few attempts to examine potential antecedents of investment dynamics. The current research attempts to integrate the investment model with contemporary perspectives on attachment and perceived partner responsiveness by examining relationship dynamics within and between persons in a yearlong, intensive longitudinal design. We found that across levels of analysis, perceived partner responsiveness shaped investment model variables which, in turn, shaped commitment. We also found that individual differences in attachment moderated some of these dynamics, such that people who were insecurely attached were less likely than others to perceive their partner as responsive. We suggest taking a more integrationist approach to close relationship research and explore romantic relationship dynamics on the within-person level.
Previous research on married couples has indicated that loneliness, an unrealized desire for close relationships, can affect even partnered adults. In addition to individual perceptions of the marital relationship, partner perceptions of the relationship might also heighten married adults’ experiences of loneliness. I employed a dyadic approach derived from the emotion-in-relationships model to examine the extent to which individual and partner reports of four dimensions of relationship quality are risk factors for loneliness among married older adults. Using structural equation modeling with dyadic data from 779 opposite-sex couples in the National Social Life, Health, and Aging Project (2010–2011), I found that spouses’ reports of positive and negative relationship quality were associated with loneliness beyond individuals’ reports. For positive relationship quality, a partner’s report had an effect equal to one’s own report. For negative relationship quality, one’s own and one’s partner’s perceptions operated in opposite ways. There were no differences between husbands and wives, and neither partner’s reports of shared marital activities or sexual relationship quality were associated with loneliness. Overall, results suggest that for married older persons, dyadic approaches to therapy might most effectively alleviate loneliness.
Individuals high on attachment avoidance are uncomfortable with thoughts of separation and loss. The goal of this research is to answer questions about the efficacy and interplay of the explicit (conscious) and implicit (preconscious) components of mental defenses designed to avoid uncomfortable thoughts. We manipulated the presence of subliminal attachment threat primes and participants’ awareness of those primes. While undergoing condition-specific threat manipulations, participants completed measures designed to measure attachment system activation. Avoidant participants who were aware of genuine attachment threat primes behaved defensively, whereas avoidant participants who were given false warnings of attachment threat primes did not. Results suggest that avoidant defenses operate on both implicit and explicit levels and are resilient to false activation.
This work examined if the association between relationship specific costs / rewards and relationship satisfaction differed between previously married and never married before individuals. The question addressed was whether going through partnership dissolution could be linked to differences in how people experienced the positive (i.e., support, companionship), as well as, the negative (i.e., conflict, inequity in give and take) aspects of their intimate relationships. Longitudinal Dutch data (the Netherlands Kinship Panel Study, NKPS) were utilized to estimate person-level random-effects models. Indeed, at high costs, the previously married reported significantly lower relationship satisfaction than the never-married-before; furthermore, at low reward levels, those in first partnerships reported significantly higher relationship satisfaction than their repartnering counterparts.
How people interpret the meaning of minor relationship transgressions can impact broader relationship well-being. It is proposed that picturing relationship transgressions from a third-person (vs. first-person) visual perspective prompts people to think of them in the context of their chronic relationship beliefs and goals. In doing so, individuals who are relatively anxious about their relationships become more insecure, whereas less anxious individuals find reassurance. In Study 1 participants pictured a transgression they committed against their partner. Individuals high in attachment anxiety made less positive evaluations of their relationships when picturing the event using a third-person rather than first-person perspective. Similar results were found when participants recalled transgressions committed by their partners against them (Study 2). These results have implications for understanding how partners move forward in their relationships after transgressions.
There is little research on the nature of relationships between individuals following the termination of a nonmarital romantic relationship. It is largely unknown to what extent former romantic partners remain close following breakup. The present research used the Investment Model of Commitment Processes, assessed prior to romantic breakup, to examine the closeness of post-breakup relationships. Results obtained from two waves of data collected from 143 young adults involved in romantic relationships at Time 1 and experiencing a romantic breakup by Time 2 indicated that pre-breakup romantic commitment mediated the effects of pre-breakup romantic satisfaction, investments, and alternatives on post-breakup closeness, with higher pre-breakup commitment predicting greater post-breakup closeness. Implications of these findings for understanding the underlying dynamics of ongoing interpersonal relationships and directions for future research are discussed.
Online dating has become an important resource for building intimate relationships. Similarity and group membership have been found to be as important for online and off-line dating. Research on terror management theory has shown that both factors shield against death anxieties, indicating difficulties for dissimilar and intergroup couples. Yet, no study—so far—has investigated both factors simultaneously after mortality salience (MS). To close this gap, the current study presented German participants (N = 249) with a dating app that randomly assigned them to a MS or control condition. Afterward, a candidate following a 2(group membership) x 2(similarity) design was suggested. After MS, in contrast to the control group, similarity increased and dissimilarity decreased the Desire to Date in-group but not out-group members.
Forgiveness within romantic relationships may have broader consequences. Two studies investigated how forgiveness decisions predict outsiders’ perceptions of individuals and their relationships. Study 1 (n = 364) used an experimental between-subject design and hypothetical vignettes to manipulate forgiveness, offense severity, and offense frequency. As hypothesized, participants perceived forgiving targets as more committed and satisfied, and the relation between forgiveness and person perceptions depended on offense frequency (competence) and severity (competence and warmth). In Study 2, participants (n = 134) recalled friends’ offenses. Forgiveness predicted perceived commitment, satisfaction, investment, warmth, and competence, at times interacting with severity and frequency, while accounting for intent and apologies. The findings are discussed in light of the importance of perceptions and social networks.
Prior studies report that couples with higher relationship quality show higher oxytocin (OT) levels, yet other studies report those with higher distress have increased OT. This study investigated these competing predictions in the context of a support enhancement intervention among 34 young married couples (N = 68). Preintervention marital quality (Dyadic Adjustment Scale) was examined for associations with plasma and salivary OT levels 4 weeks apart and for changes between these time points within the intervention group. High relationship quality, not distress, was associated with higher OT in both saliva and plasma at both time points. No significant interaction was found between marital quality and intervention condition; relationship quality and support intervention were both independently associated with higher postintervention OT levels.
Attachment anxiety is characterized by rumination about romantic relationships, particularly when the attachment system is activated. Two studies investigated the hypothesis that more anxiously attached individuals would experience cognitive load when attachment concerns were activated (vs. not activated). Study 1 found that more anxious persons encountering relationship threat (vs. no threat) demonstrated greater holistic processing on a shape categorization task, a type of processing reflective of cognitive load. Study 2 found that more anxious persons encountering relationship threat (vs. no threat or academic threat) exhibited slower reaction times on a Stroop task, a pattern also reflective of cognitive load. This research lends novel insight into how attachment system activation and relationship reflection pose a cognitive vulnerability for more anxious individuals.
Compassionate love has been identified as one of the major types of love experienced in relationships (Berscheid, 2010), but one that has been overshadowed by the study of romantic love. In this article, we review research on compassionate love, a relative newcomer to the close relationships field, and present findings that more fully flesh-out the nature of the experience of this kind of love. We begin by discussing conceptions and measurement of compassionate love. We then present a study on the relation between compassionate love and love styles, with a focus on distinguishing between compassionate love and the agape (altruistic) love style. The literature on individual differences in compassionate love is discussed next. The spotlight then shifts to research on the link between compassionate love and prosocial relationship behaviors, relationship quality, and relationship stability. Differences between compassionate love given versus received also are highlighted. We end with a discussion of what compassionate love "looks like" in the context of a romantic relationship and recommend directions for future research.
Previous research indicates that partner responsiveness and self-expansion play key roles in the creation, maintenance, and improvement of close relationships. This experiment examined the hypothesis that active (vs. passive) partner support for an individual’s opportunity for self-expansion would increase relationship satisfaction. In an experimental task manipulated to be either self-expanding or stressful, dating couple members (N = 116; 58 couples) received active or passive support messages, ostensibly from their partners. Among those in longer term (14–60 months), but not in shorter term relationships, relationship satisfaction increased significantly more for those who received active (vs. passive) support for self-expansion. This same pattern was not found when partners’ messages responded to a stressful task or for couples in short-term relationships. This study provides the first experimental evidence for effects on relationship satisfaction of partner support for individual self-expansion. In addition, the findings suggest the potential substantial importance of relationship length for moderating self-expansion processes.
Despite the increase in divorces after a long relationship, this trend remains a neglected research topic. The present contribution seeks to identify patterns of psychological adaptation to divorce after a long-term marriage. Data from a questionnaire study with 308 persons aged 45–65 years, who divorced after having been married for an average of 25 years, are presented. Exploratory latent profile analysis with various well-being outcomes revealed five groups: one with average adapted, one with resilients, and three small groups with seriously affected individuals. Discriminant variables between the groups were personality, time since separation, a new relationship, and financial situation. Age, gender, and length of marriage played a marginal role; satisfaction with the former marriage and initiator status were not relevant.
This study investigated the moderating role of partner enhancement and verification on couples’ emotional responses to daily conflicts. Each evening for 5 weeks, 264 couples in which one partner was under stress reported whether a conflict occurred and both positive and negative relationship feelings. Partners rated each other on relationship-central and relationship-peripheral traits before the diary period, allowing us to examine the consequences of derogation (partner views more negative than self-views) and enhancement (partner views more positive than self-views) relative to verification. Derogation on both relationship-central and relationship-peripheral traits was associated with more negative conflict responses. Enhancement on relationship-peripheral traits was associated with more negative conflict responses than verification. Although not as consistent a pattern, results suggest that enhancement on relationship-central traits was beneficial.
The purpose of this research was to examine the role of self-construal on goal instrumentality in close friendships. Participants (105 female friend dyads, N = 210) were asked to set personal academic goals and were followed up over the course of a semester. Using the actor–partner interdependence model, results revealed that those with a high relational self-construal were more likely to perceive their friends to be instrumental to their goals. This in turn led to greater friendship commitment and closeness as well as greater goal progress over the course of the semester. Actor’s perception of goal instrumentality did not lead to friend’s goal progress but did have positive relational consequences. The results highlight the benefits of relying on others in self-regulation.
Four studies documented the pros and cons of people’s experiences of relational commitment. Study 1 used individual’s own words to develop an initial taxonomy of elements connected with commitment. Study 2 empirically refined that taxonomy, identifying three primary factors underlying perceptions of commitment—positive, negative, and constraint. Study 3 found evidence of convergent validity with various measures of relationship commitment and satisfaction. Finally, Study 4 demonstrated that the positive, negative, and constraint elements were differentially associated with ratings of positive and negative relationship quality. The findings provide an important and necessary step in efforts to create a better understanding of how individuals personally view and experience the contradictory nature of commitment in intimate relationships.
The reported research tested whether the social and agentic content of nostalgic memories varies as a function of attachment-related avoidance. We measured individual differences in attachment-related avoidance and anxiety and coded the interpersonal and agentic content of nostalgic and non-nostalgic narratives. Results revealed that nostalgic (relative to non-nostalgic) narratives contained more social content and that this link was not moderated by attachment-related avoidance. There was a significant association between attachment-related avoidance and attachment-related social content in nostalgic, but not non-nostalgic, past narratives. There was also a significant association between attachment-related avoidance and agency content in nostalgic, but not non-nostalgic narratives.
This study examined the role of compassionate love (CL) in shaping cognitive, emotional, physiological, and behavioral responses to partner distress (N = 56 couples). One member of each couple (the support provider) observed his/her partner perform an easy or difficult stress task (designed to vary signals of partner distress). Support providers in the difficult (vs. easy) condition showed more partner focus, emotional distress, and blood pressure reactivity during the task and expressed more support afterward. Support providers high (vs. low) in CL showed greater partner focus and emotional empathy and sent more caring messages. Additional analyses suggest that CL increases sensitivity to a partner’s distress and that the link between CL and support behavior is mediated by increases in empathy and attention to one’s partner.
Attempting to initiate physical intimacy with a partner has traditionally been explored through the lens of sexual pressure and coercion and linked to negative couple outcomes. The present study utilized a sample of 397 male/female couples in committed relationships (married and cohabiting) to explore more generally how attempts at sexual intimacy were associated with varying relational outcomes. Results suggested that unlike previously established associations with sexual coercion, more generalized attempts at physical intimacy were associated with better relationship outcomes, including more relationship satisfaction, better couple communication, and less couple conflict. Gender moderated the results in that men’s attempts at intimacy were particularly associated with positive relational outcomes. The implications of considering attempts for physical intimacy as a positive aspect of couple sexuality are discussed.
People view monogamy as the optimal form of partnering and stigmatize consensual non-monogamous (CNM) relationships. Likewise, attachment researchers often equate romantic love (and security) with sexual exclusivity. Interestingly, a sizeable minority of people engage in CNM and report high levels of satisfaction. Across two studies, we examined how individual differences in attachment were associated with attitudes toward CNM, willingness to engage in CNM, and current involvement in CNM. Among individuals who had never engaged in CNM, avoidance was robustly linked to more positive attitudes and greater willingness to engage in CNM. However, avoidant individuals were less likely to engage in CNM than in monogamous relationships. Understanding attachment in multiple partner relationships can provide new avenues for exploring the complexities of relationships.
Mate selection seems to be based to some extent on appearance and physique. Assortative mating suggests that romantic partners select each other based on their similarity in important characteristics. Two studies examined the similarity in physiques of members of romantic couples. Study 1 found that the physical measurements of brides-to-be were positively correlated with those of their fiancés, although the brides were lighter and shorter than their partners. The exception was that brides who lost weight before their wedding initially had body mass indexes (BMIs) very similar to their partners. Study 2 also found similarity in weight and BMI between university couple partners. Partners’ ratings of the participants’ physical attractiveness were higher than participants’ own self-ratings, particularly for females. Romantic couples were thus similar in physique and share the same (inaccurate) view of their partners’ height and weight. These findings support assortative mating and highlight the importance of weight in the partner selection process.
Guided by the cognitive mediation model of sexual decision making (Norris, Masters, & Zawacki, 2004. Cognitive mediation of women’s sexual decision making: The influence of alcohol, contextual factors, and background variables. Annual Review of Sex Research, 15, 258–296), we examined female social drinkers’ (N = 162) in-the-moment risky sexual decision making by testing how individual differences (relationship motivation) and situational factors (alcohol consumption and sexual precedence conditions) influenced cognitive appraisals and sexual outcomes in a hypothetical sexual scenario. In a path model, acute intoxication, sexual precedence, and relationship motivation interactively predicted primary relationship appraisals and independently predicted primary sex appraisals. Primary appraisals predicted secondary appraisals related to relationship and unprotected sex, which predicted unprotected sex intentions. Sexual precedence directly increased unprotected sex intentions. Findings support the cognitive mediation model and suggest that sexual risk reduction interventions should address alcohol, relationship, sexual, and cognitive factors.
Locations where individuals meet romantic partners may influence the composition and perceived extent of network social support for relationships. In this article, we use in-depth qualitative interviews to examine how 62 cohabiting couples (124 individuals) met their romantic partners, whether this differentiates respondents’ perceptions of support for their relationships, and how this varies by social class. Many of the cohabiting couples in our sample met through friends and family members who can be considered strong ties. Couples also frequently reported meeting in the community, often while pursuing hobbies. Shared network ties and common interests are often attributed to facilitating the progression of relationships. Couples who met through more anomic settings—at a bar or via the Internet—less often viewed their ways of meeting as socially acceptable; many of these couples devised cover stories to tell others about how they met. Our results suggest that those who meet via weak ties perceive lower levels of support for their unions. Working-class couples meet in more anomic settings or through weaker ties more frequently than their middle-class counterparts. Results are interpreted in light of their implications for the diverging family outcomes of working-class and middle-class young adults.
Theorists agree that commitment has different components, but the interaction between two fundamental aspects of commitment—dedication (interpersonal commitment) and constraint (external pressures to stay together)—has not been examined to our knowledge. The effects of the interaction between dedication and constraint on several measures of discomfort were examined among adults in opposite-sex dating relationships (N = 1,294). In the context of lower dedication, greater material or perceived constraint was associated with more psychological distress, feelings of entrapment, and anxiety about abandonment. These results indicate that constraints feel subjectively different depending on interpersonal commitment to the relationship. Examining such interactions may help researchers better understand the role of constraints in the developmental course of romantic relationship commitment.
We recently showed that security priming facilitates safe haven support and overrides the detrimental effects of mental depletion (Mikulincer, Shaver, Sahdra, & Bar-On, 2013, Can security-enhancing interventions overcome psychological barriers to responsiveness in couple relationships? Attachment & Human Development, 15, 246–260.). Here, we extend these findings by examining another contextual barrier to caregiving (self-worth threat) and the effects of security priming on secure base support. In Study 1, participants were randomly assigned to one of four conditions based on self-worth threat (yes, no) and security priming (yes, no) manipulations, and their behaviors were video recorded while they interacted with their romantic partner who was disclosing a personal problem. In Study 2, participants were randomly assigned to one of four conditions based on depletion (yes, no) and security priming (yes, no) manipulations, and their behaviors were videotaped while they interacted with their romantic partner who was exploring personal goals. In both studies, independent judges rated participants’ responsiveness to their partner’s needs during the videotaped interaction. Self-esteem threat and mental depletion adversely affected responsiveness to a partner’s disclosures. Security priming facilitated responsiveness in both studies and overrode the detrimental effects of mental depletion on secure base support.
The current study tests an explanation inspired by social baseline theory (Beckes & Coan, 2011. Social baseline theory: The role of social proximity in emotion and economy of action. Social and Personality Psychology Compass, 5, 976–988. doi:10.1111/j.1751-9004.2011.00400) for the mixed blessings associated with received emotional support from one’s partner. We reason that the receipt of emotional support engenders benefits only up to individualized baseline points—that is, support effects will be nonmonotonic. In two dyadic daily-diary samples (N = 38/80 couples, over 21/35 days, respectively), we used piecewise multilevel modeling, finding support for our hypotheses. Receiving emotional support exceeding one’s baseline was associated with little affective change; receiving emotional support falling short of one’s baseline was consistently associated with worsened moods and relationship feelings. This work highlights the importance of individuals’ baseline levels as reference or comparison points for understanding support’s effects.
The purpose of the present study was to investigate the direction of effects between parents’ sources of knowledge and children’s involvement in bullying and victimization at school. The participants were 348 early adolescents with a mean age of 13.5 years and their mothers. The children completed the Revised Bullying and Victimization Questionnaire, while the mothers completed the Parental Knowledge Questionnaire. Data were collected in two time points with a 6-month interval. The structural equation model showed that child disclosure and parental control at Time 1 (T1) positively predicted bullying at Time 2 (T2), while parental solicitation at T1 negatively predicted bullying at T2. Conversely, bullying at T1 positively predicted child disclosure and parental control at T2, while victimization at T1 positively predicted parental solicitation at T2 and negatively predicted child disclosure at T2. The results confirmed that the relationship between parental knowledge and bullying is reciprocal and that prior parental solicitation was the only source of knowledge that was negatively related with future involvement in bullying. Interestingly, victimization at T2 was not related with any of the sources of parental knowledge at T1 indicating that parents’ effort to know about their youths’ socialization may not lead to reducing victimization. Bullying, however, appeared to be negatively predicted by prior parental solicitation indicating that parents’ effort to know who their children socialize with may indeed operate as a protective barrier. Finally, our study showed that prior victimization is related with less child disclosure, which confirms the assumption that victimized children often hide their experience from their parents.
A "rebound relationship" is commonly understood as a relationship that is initiated shortly after a romantic breakup—before the feelings about the former relationship have been resolved. However, little research has examined the consequences of quickly beginning new romantic relationships after another has ended. In two studies we examined people who experienced a breakup and assessed their well-being, their feelings about their ex-partner, and whether they were seeing someone new. Analyses indicated that people in new relationships were more confident in their desirability and had more resolution over their ex-partner. Among those in new relationships, the speed with which they began their relationship was associated with greater psychological and relational health. Overall, these findings suggest that rebound relationships may be more beneficial than typically believed.
The present study explores how people use social networking sites to adjust to breakups by studying their postdissolution behaviors. We apply Rollie and Duck’s (2006) relationship dissolution model by examining how collegiate Facebook users (N = 208) enact behaviors in breakups to extend the model to online environments during and after breakups. Furthermore, we employed a retrospective design utilizing qualitative methods to define categories of behavioral responses to a breakup on Facebook. The analysis revealed online behaviors that overlapped with the dissolution model as well as paralleled previous research into online behaviors. Results are discussed using the relationship dissolution model framework to individuals modifying online relationship statuses, "unfriending" previous partners, and limiting profile access in order to manage relationship termination.
The positive impact of active–constructive responding (i.e., showing enthusiasm) to the sharing of good news (i.e., capitalization attempts) on relationship well-being is well documented. The objective of this research was to determine whether individuals in a close relationship benefit from training to increase active–constructive responding to partner capitalization attempts and to document its impact on relationship well-being. Compared with a joint activity control group, individuals who received training in providing active–constructive responses perceived a greater amount of gratitude from their study partner and perceived their study partner as having greater relationship satisfaction; however, there were no significant differences in reported relationship satisfaction or gratitude expression. Gratitude receipt from a study partner mediated the relationship between experimental condition and perceived study partner relationship satisfaction. These results are discussed in terms of their potential impact on interventions and future research.
Driven by the social development model, this study examines the associations of family functioning, school climate, and internalizing symptoms with disordered eating attitudes in early adolescence. Results from a representative sample of 848 sixth- and seventh-grade students indicate that disordered eating attitudes are positively correlated with family conflict and maternal psychological control and perceived friction and competition among classmates, in addition to female gender, depressive symptoms and social anxiety. Contrary to our hypotheses, perceived cohesion among classmates is positively associated with disordered eating attitudes. These findings highlight the importance of interpersonal relationships at the school and family level, as well as internalizing symptoms, in shaping disordered eating attitudes during adolescence.
Sympathetic magic and attachment theory enable the drawing of a parallel between functions of material possessions that are used in the absence of parents and a romantic partner. The ascribing of magical significance to objects may be a coping strategy facilitated by dispositional anxieties and situational threats. The aim of this research was to examine whether romantic magical thinking (MT) comforts individuals by regulating the perceived distance from a loved one. Study 1 confirmed that perceived closeness mediated the positive association between MT and safe/relaxed emotions. Study 2 revealed that induced MT about a partner’s photograph resulted in increased feelings of this person’s presence, which mediated the link between MT and safe/relaxed emotions. The coping potential of MT is discussed.
Using dyadic data from 200 young adult couples (aged 18–31 years) in Mainland China and guided by the Development of Early Adult Romantic Relationships model (Bryant & Conger, 2002), the current study evaluated direct and indirect associations between family of origin dysfunction and intimate relationship success via the potential mediators of mental health problems and negative couple interaction. Results demonstrated male partner family dysfunction was associated directly and indirectly with lower relationship success via negative couple interaction. Female partner family dysfunction was related to their own reduced relationship success via mental health problems and less relationship success for male partners via mental health problems and negative couple interaction. Implications for intervention, theory development, and future research are discussed.
Research on relational maintenance shows that mundane day-to-day talk is important in sustaining relationships. This study explores how absence associated with the visitation process shapes nonresidential parents’ communication with their children. Participants’ open-ended responses indicate that several factors facilitate and constrain interaction with their children during absence including their philosophy about communication boundaries, technology, and their relationship with the other parent. Participants who have limited interactions struggle to "know" their children, while those with frequent interaction with their children have access to the mundane stories of their children’s lives, which helps to maintain the relationships. This research suggests that the process of updating about what occurs during absence may be central to maintaining relationships.
This study examined two types of influence (reputational and personal) children perceive from different sources (i.e., close friends, well-liked peers, and popular peers). Participants included 455 third through fifth grade students. A quadratic assignment procedure was used wherein children’s peer nominations of the source of influence were correlated with their nominations of the type of influence. Findings suggested that children perceive personal influence more so than reputational influence from close friends and well-liked peers. In contrast, children perceive reputational influence more so than personal influence from popular peers. The degree to which children perceive personal influence from the three sources differed by behavioral domains (i.e., academic and trend-following behaviors). Implications for peer influence research and intervention are discussed.
This study utilizes a social exchange perspective to examine mentors’ reported commitment and relational maintenance in formal youth mentoring relationships. One hundred and forty-five adult mentors from four mentoring programs completed surveys about aspects of their current youth mentoring relationship. Study measures assessed Investment Model variables (satisfaction, alternatives, investments, and commitment), stay/leave behavior, and reported use of relational maintenance strategies. Analyses supported hypotheses derived from the Investment Model, and commitment, in turn, predicted stay/leave behavior for mentors. In addition, a mediation model demonstrated that commitment mediates the relationships between some Investment Model variables and three of five relational maintenance strategies. The unique nature of formal youth mentoring relationships as prescribed is discussed, as are practical applications for mentoring programs.
Building personal relationships with out-group members is an important catalyst of positive intergroup attitudes. In a 2 x 2 experimental design, Caucasian and African American individuals and couples were randomly assigned to interact in either cross-race or same-race individual dyads and couple pairs. Participants completed pretest measures of race attitudes and engaged in a high self-disclosure closeness-induction task with an in-group or out-group race member in pairs of couples or individuals and completed measures of self-disclosure and intergroup attitudes. These results suggest that intergroup contact in the presence of romantic partners may be particularly effective for improving intergroup attitudes. We explore the implications of these results for developing compassionate love toward out-groups.
This study used latent change score models to examine how couples make progress toward resolution when they experience conflicts. It examined why negative conflict engagement might sometimes predict increased resolution, and how this process might be moderated by relationship satisfaction. A sample of 734 people in heterosexual marriages or cohabitation relationships were asked to identify an episode of relationship conflict and complete a questionnaire measuring types of negative behavior, attributions, anger, and soft emotion as well as measures of current discord, peak discord, positive behavior, and types of conflict disengagement. Negative engagement predicted peak levels of conflict discord, but for people in satisfying relationships, this effect was benign because large conflicts predicted large resolutions regardless of negative engagement levels.
Past research has identified several communication strategies that are used to end relationships (e.g., Baxter, 1982). The present study extends this research by considering how young adults’ propensity to experience compassionate love for a romantic partner is associated with their reported use of breakup strategies. A sample of US university students (n = 343) who had initiated the breakup of a past relationship completed a survey about the disengagement strategies they used. Participants’ compassionate love for their partner (recalled when the relationship existed) was associated with the use of more compassionate strategies to end the relationship. Compassionate love for humanity also was associated with the use of compassionate strategies, albeit to a lesser extent. The present findings suggest that compassionate love not only is beneficial for a relationship while it is intact, but may also play an important role in the process of relationship dissolution.
We modeled by-gender risk paths of maternal, paternal, and parental psychological control effects on emerging adult overt and peer relational aggression using structural equation models. The effect of adolescent conduct problems on emerging adults’ (aged 18–24) aggression was examined through its effect on parents’ psychological control. Additionally, a social–cognitive mediation model of aggression was tested linking conduct problems and parents’ psychological control with hostility and low guilt and concern for harming others. Results highlighted the salience of the social–cognitive model for female emerging adults’ aggression risk. For example, maternal/paternal psychological control and hostility mediated effects of conduct problems on female aggression types. Additionally, combined parental psychological control and hostility mediated effects of conduct problems on female aggression types.
The current study tested between-person hypotheses that global negative affect, friendship intimacy, and close friend drug use predict increased substance use, and the within-person hypothesis that friendship intimacy and close friend substance use moderate the temporal relationship between daily negative affect and subsequent substance use (i.e., self-medication). Experience sampling methodology captured daily variations in mood and substance use, and multilevel modeling techniques were used to parse between- versus within-person effects. Findings supported between-person hypotheses that greater negative affect and lower friendship intimacy predicted greater substance use, and a consistent trend indicated that friendship intimacy and close friend drug use interact to predict substance use overall (though not for self-medication). Risk and protective mechanisms indicate that the effect of friendship intimacy on adolescent use depends on close friend drug use.
Online information-seeking strategies are well understood in the context of health information acquisition but less is known about the information management of interpersonal information gathered over the Internet. One way to understand this nascent method for information seeking is to examine the motives that underlie one’s intent to seek online information about others. The present study applies theory of motivated information management (TMIM) to online information seeking. The first goal of the study is to examine whether the processes predictive of offline interpersonal information seeking, articulated in TMIM, apply to mediated contexts. The second goal is to investigate whether predictions of TMIM are consistent across various relationship types. A survey design was employed to collect data from college students and nonstudent adults. The results of the study demonstrate strong support for the application of TMIM to information seeking over the Internet. The findings also indicate support for the model across various relationships except best friendships. Implications to research and theory on interpersonal information management over the Internet are discussed.
Using data from the 2006 Japanese General Social Survey, we examine the association between gender role attitudes, spousal "troubles talk," and marital satisfaction. We find that, in line with prior research, belief in gender egalitarianism is associated with higher marital satisfaction for men, whereas it is negatively associated with women’s marital satisfaction. More troubles talk is associated with higher marital satisfaction for both genders. Only for women, troubles talk significantly mediates the association between gender role attitudes and marital satisfaction. Compared with gender-traditional women, egalitarian women have troubles talk less frequently and thus experience lower marital satisfaction.
It is commonly believed that passionate love diminishes over time even as companionate love may grow. According to the self-expansion model (Aron and Aron (1986) Love and the expansion of the self: Understanding attraction and satisfaction. New York, NY: Hemisphere Publishing Co/Harper & Row Publishers), this change may reflect changes in opportunities for self-expansion in the relationship. Early in relationships, as partners continuously learn new things about each other, self-expansion—which occurs through the integration of the qualities and characteristics of the partner into oneself—generates passion for one’s partner. Later, as one’s partner is completely included in the self, self-expansion opportunities diminish and less passion is generated. From this perspective, if self-expansion could be sustained, so could passionate love. Over 500 adults in a Midwestern community responded to a telephone survey about their romantic relationship. They answered questions about the length of their relationship, experiences of self-expansion within their relationship, passionate love—including both romantic and obsessive components—and companionate love. As expected, people in longer lasting relationships reported lower levels of self-expansion within their relationships. Romantic and obsessive components of passionate love showed different patterns across time in relationship, but both were positively associated with self-expansion experiences as expected by the model. Self-expansion was unrelated to companionate love. Broadly consistent with the self-expansion model, these findings highlight a need for further theoretical development to explain the specific linkages of self-expansion with different components of passion.
A model of extradyadic temptation and mate guarding was tested in the present dyadic daily report study. Results indicated that participants (perceivers) perceived their partner’s (targets) daily extradyadic temptation and that these perceptions predicted perceivers’ daily mate-guarding behaviors. Perceivers’ chronic jealousy moderated these relationships. These results suggest that perceivers, especially chronically jealous perceivers, are sensitive to their partners’ temptation for extradyadic relations and respond to this temptation with relationship-protective behaviors. Furthermore, perceivers’ mate-guarding behaviors predicted increases in targets’ subsequent daily commitment, suggesting that perceivers’ mate guarding works to deter targets from future infidelity by increasing targets’ commitment to the relationship. These findings suggest an interpersonal process in which people detect and then regulate their partners’ extradyadic temptation.
The purpose of this article is to provide an overview of recent relational trends in Poland. Based on the clinical, theoretical, and empirical literature, the overview addresses both attitudinal (e.g., focus on individual need fulfillment and gender equality) and behavioral (e.g., timing of first intercourse and living arrangements) factors. The literature review is divided into four categories: (a) leaving home; (b) intimate relationships; (c) love, sexuality, and fertility; and (d) economics, work, and gender. Although some contrasts to prior generations are noted, the overview focuses primarily on relational trends among the current generation of Polish young adults.
Regulating emotions in interpersonal contexts requires managing one’s own emotion, a partner’s emotion, and the emotional tone of the relationship (e.g., conflict and intimacy). This multifaceted regulatory challenge, often referred to as "relationship-focused coping," has been associated with health outcomes, but the real-time emotional processes involved are understudied. We use state-space grids (a recently developed graphical method) to investigate dynamic sequences of emotional experience (positive vs. negative) and relationship-focused coping intentions (to protect vs. engage one’s partner) taken from 26 couples in which one or both partners were smokers, while they discussed a health-related disagreement during a nonsmoking baseline and then while smoking. State-space indicators of contingent emotion-coping sequences showed evidence of both successful regulation (associated with improving emotional state) and unsuccessful regulation (associated with worsening emotional state). The pattern of results suggests that interpersonal emotion regulation may interfere with smoking cessation differently depending upon whether one or both partners smoke.
Attachment styles are often primed by having participants recall and describe a relationship that is prototypical of a given attachment style. Researchers may exclude participants who cannot recall such a relationship or who describe relationships that do not conform to the assigned prime. I suggest that excluding participants is untenable and may threaten a study’s validity. In the present research, I examine predictors of exclusion from an attachment-priming study. Priming insecure attachment resulted in greater odds of exclusion relative to a control condition. Female participants with greater sexual experience also had lesser odds of exclusion. These results suggest that attachment-priming procedures contribute to participant exclusion that compromise internal and external validity. Discussion focuses on directions for future attachment-priming research.
Guided by the Development of Early Adult Romantic Relationships (DEARR) model (Bryant & Conger, 2002). The current study explores the direct and indirect associations between family of origin functioning and relationship success among Mainland Chinese young adults in romantic relationships (N = 224). Results from the structural equation model analysis indicated that family dysfunction is negatively related to romantic relationship success directly, and the bootstrap test of indirect effects revealed two significant indirect pathways: (1) family dysfunction to problem solving to relationship success and (2) family dysfunction to depression symptoms to problem solving to relationship success. This model proved a better fit to the data than two plausible alternative models and highlights the potential cross-cultural applicability of the DEARR model. Implications for theory development, intervention, and future research are discussed.
This qualitative study utilized relational dialectics theory (Baxter, 2011) to examine competing discourses within parent–adolescent conversations about extracurricular activities during the transition to high school. The data for this study consisted of self-generated, self-directed conversations between 20 parent–adolescent dyads. Using content analysis, data were coded for the category of conversation topic and then the presence of Baxter’s (1988) three competing discourses within each category: autonomy–connection, openness–closedness, and certainty–uncertainty. Results suggest that the dyads spoke most about the transition to high school, extracurricular activities, peer relationships, and academics. Baxter’s (1990, 2011) three competing discourses were evident in parent–adolescent conversations with autonomy–connection being the most frequent competing discourse noted either alone or co-occurring with another competing discourse.
Compassionate love (CL ) is a form of altruistic, caring love that emphasizes concern for the other’s well-being. How is CL expressed in marriage? To address this question, we adopted a behavioral acts perspective in which we examined among newlyweds the presence or absence of a series of behavioral manifestations of CL. A sample of 175 newlywed couples completed daily diaries for 2 weeks, describing their own compassionate acts and their perceptions of their partners’ compassionate acts. We found clear evidence that CL acts contributed to both spouses’ daily marital satisfaction. These effects were independent of general positivity or negativity of behavior. We also employed a quasi-signal detection analysis to determine whether acts that both partners recognize as compassionate are more influential than acts that only one of them acknowledges. This hypothesis was supported. Our findings indicate that CL-related behavior represents a beneficial form of caring interaction that merits further attention in relationship research.
The current study examines forgiveness from the perspective of the transgressor, an often overlooked aspect of interpersonal forgiveness and a model of forgiveness seeking is proposed. Using a 2-wave longitudinal design, 166 participants completed measures of the characteristics of their transgressions, their feelings of guilt and shame, and their forgiveness-seeking behaviors. Cross-lagged correlational analysis indicated that guilt at time 1 was related to forgiveness seeking at time 2, but the opposite was not true. Path analyses revealed that guilt mediated the impact of transgression and relationship factors (i.e., transgression severity, responsibility, rumination, and relationship commitment) on forgiveness-seeking behavior over time. Shame, however, did not demonstrate any unique relationship with forgiveness-seeking behaviors. These findings suggest that guilt serves as a primary motivator for forgiveness seeking, indicating that it is a particularly important element to consider when working with transgressors. Overall, this study provides a conceptual model of the antecedents of forgiveness-seeking behaviors by transgressors, similar to those available for the antecedents of forgiveness seeking by victims.
Individuals living with HIV experience higher rates of stigmatizing social interactions that may negatively impact psychological and physical health. We examined depressive symptoms as a mediator of the relationship between HIV-specific unsupportive social interactions (USIs) and health behaviors in 87 Black and White men living with HIV (MLWH). We also examined ethnicity as a moderator of this model. Depressive symptoms were an indirect mechanism through which HIV-specific USIs explained poorer health behaviors. The indirect effects between disconnecting USI, more depressive symptoms, and poorer health behaviors were significant for Black men but not for White men. Depressive symptoms may be one pathway through which USI are associated with physical health, and disconnecting USI may be particularly detrimental for Black MLWH.
Hooking up is a common behavior among young adults. Studies examining predictors of hooking up have yielded mixed results. This prospective study (N = 339) used latent class regression analysis to identify two distinct groups for which hooking up was predicted differently. In all, 30% of participants accounted for 74% of those reporting hooking up across the entire sample. They reported significantly higher levels of alcohol use and depressive symptoms and lower levels of religiosity compared to participants in the other group. The patterns of predictive variables suggest that some young adults may pursue hooking up as a means of coping with distress, while others may do so as a way to meet attachment needs. These results illustrate that motivational factors for hooking up vary and may manifest in group-defined patterns. Using new methods to analyze hooking up may improve research accuracy and enhance understanding of young adult sexual behavior.
This study investigates the inter- and intraracial dating preferences of heterosexual Asian males and females as well as gay Asian males. Using data collected from 1270 Internet dating profiles, logistic regression is employed to examine the odds of one’s willingness to date someone who is Asian, White, Black, Hispanic, and some other race. The findings suggest that heterosexual females and gay males prefer to date Whites over nonwhites. Moreover, respondents from both sexual orientations were less likely to express a preference to date another Asian compared to their heterosexual male counterparts. Our results also reveal that educational attainment influences the willingness among Asians to date a fellow Asian. Finally, the analyses indicate significant differences in dating preferences based on the region of residence and age. The current results are discussed in relation to both the historical and present sociocultural racial climate, focusing on how media depictions and identity formation may play a part in shaping racial dating preferences for Asians.
Socio-demographic heterogamy is commonly believed to lead to lower relationship stability due to the presence of cultural differences between partners. This explanation lacks empirical support, as psychology studies have not confirmed the link between heterogamy and cultural differences, whereas sociological studies have been characterized by problems related to the choice and measurement of cultural differences. Progressing from previous research, this article examines the specific link between educational heterogamy and cultural differences in the domain of child-rearing. Results partly confirm the alternative hypotheses of child-rearing values and behaviors being subject to gender differences and processes of selection between partners. Nonetheless, they also indicate a positive link between educational heterogamy and differences in child-rearing values and behaviors between partners.
Romantic partners’ dyadic perceptions of their goals and conflict strategies in ongoing, unresolved conflict are examined in relation to one another and to these serial arguments’ perceived resolvability. Specifically, elements of Bevan, Finan, and Kaminsky’s ((2008) Modeling serial arguments in close relationships: The serial argument process model, Human Communication Research, 34, 600–624) serial argument process model were considered here as dyadic perceptions. Eighty-four romantic partners completed surveys that measured their self-reports of perceived resolvability and self- and perceived partner reports of serial argument goal importance and conflict strategy usage. Whereas there were relatively more self-perception/actor effects for goal importance and conflict strategy usage, there were more partner perception/partner conflict strategy usage effects on perceived resolvability. The implications of these findings for the dyadic consideration of serial arguments and Bevan et al.’s model are presented.
The health benefits associated with marriage are disproportionately large in older adulthood, due in part to the powerful role spouses play in promoting each other’s well-being. What remains unclear is what motivates this caretaking. To determine whether compassionate love plays a role, the current study used an Actor–Partner Interdependence Model to examine how 64 older couples’ compassionate love is linked to their health. Feeling compassionate love was linked to better health for wives. The partner effects, however, painted a more complicated picture, with the receipt of compassionate love appearing to undermine health. Given the unprecedented growth in the number of older adults in the United States, we have a vested interest in determining how compassionate love may help or hinder well-being in later-life marriages.
This study examined potential discriminators of groups of older adults showing different patterns of stability or change in loneliness over 5 years: those who became lonely, overcame loneliness, were persistently lonely, and were persistently not lonely. Discriminant function analysis results showed that the persistently lonely, compared with the persistently not lonely, were more often living alone, widowed, and experiencing poorer health and perceived control. Moreover, changes in living arrangements and perceived control predicted loneliness change. In conclusion, perceiving that one is able to meet social needs is a predictor of loneliness and loneliness change and appears to be more important than people’s friendships. Because the predictors were better able to predict entry into loneliness, results point to the promise of prevention approaches to loneliness interventions.
How much and why individuals in romantic relationships drink alcohol may be a function of both personal and relational influences. The current research examined factors that predict vulnerability to health-related risky behavior (i.e., drinking to cope and drinking problems) in response to relationship difficulties. We consider the possibility that for individuals whose self-worth is contingently tied to the fluctuations of their relationship, feeling less satisfied may predict increased drinking problems; moreover, this may be mediated by drinking to cope. This study evaluated relationship-contingent self-esteem (RCSE) as a moderator of the association between relationship satisfaction and coping motives, which was expected to predict alcohol problems in couples. Both members in committed relationships (N = 78 dyads) reported relationship satisfaction, RCSE, drinking to cope motives, and alcohol problems in a cross-sectional survey. Actor–Partner Interdependence Model analyses revealed significant mediated moderation among men, such that higher RCSE interacted with lower relationship satisfaction to predict stronger coping motives, in turn predicting increased drinking problems. Implications and future directions are discussed.
This study examined whether maternal emotional functioning—emotional awareness and depression—guides the coping suggestions mothers make to their children in the context of a common childhood stressor (peer victimization). Across two waves of a longitudinal study, 330 mothers and their second graders (mean age (M) = 7.95 years, SD = .33; 158 boys and 172 girls) completed questionnaires. Emotional awareness predicted more primary control engagement suggestions (directly addressing stress or emotions). Depression predicted fewer cognitive restructuring suggestions (thinking positively) and more cognitive avoidance suggestions (orienting thoughts away from stress). Interactive effects between maternal emotional functioning and child sex also emerged. This study elucidates the impact of mothers’ emotional functioning on how they teach their children to cope with stress.
Expressing and receiving affectionate messages have emotional and physiological benefits (Floyd, 2006a). Previously, research has called for an examination of why people withhold affectionate messages that may provide these positive effects (Horan & Booth-Butterfield, 2013). Accordingly, this study examined instances of withholding affection in a variety of romantic relationships. Participants initially completed general scales of deception and affection followed by a 7-day diary detailing what they felt when they withheld affection, what they communicated in place of affection, and their deceptive motives. After inductively developing a coding scheme, 12 themes were identified for what participants felt, the most common of which were liking, a desire for affection, and irritation. Eleven themes emerged for what was communicated in lieu of affection, some of which were moderated affection, rejection, and jealousy-evoking. Eleven themes emerged for reasons why participants withheld affection, including concern for perception, inappropriate circumstances, punishment, and using withholding affection to test a romantic partner. There were no variations in frequency of deception, expressed or received affection based on participant sex or relationship type. Withholding affection is a common and complex process in relationships.
The current study explored how family characteristics (i.e., family cohesiveness and marital adjustment) and child characteristics (i.e., temperament) assessed when the child was 13 months old predicted child behavior with mothers and fathers at 36 months. Mother–father–child interaction was observed to assess family cohesiveness at 13 months. Mothers and fathers also completed questionnaires assessing their perceptions of marital adjustment and their child’s temperament at 13 months. Based on dyadic parent–child interactions at 36 months, under-controlled behavior and positive engagement were examined as outcome variables. Results indicated that observed family cohesiveness predicted positive engagement with both parents. Moreover, in families with high cohesiveness at 13 months, child behavior was significantly consistent across mother–child and father–child interactions, whereas in families with low cohesiveness, consistency of child behavior was not observed. Results also revealed that fathers’ perceptions of marital adjustment directly predicted child behavior with fathers, while the combination of low family cohesiveness/low marital adjustment and difficult temperament predicted child behavior with mothers.
This research describes perceived rules pertaining to honesty in romantic relationships, identifies sources of accuracy and bias affecting consensus on rules, and clarifies implications for couple conflict. Couples typically idealize honesty; yet, situational rules are vulnerable to different interpretations due to ambiguous properties of deception and pressures to balance openness with discretion. The research distinguishes obligatory rules, which prescribe disclosure or proscribe deception, and discretionary rules, which grant flexibility. Couples agreed on obligatory rules more than discretionary rules, although females endorsed obligatory rules more than males. Individuals overestimated agreement, overattributed sex-stereotypic rule endorsement to the partner, and showed minimal understanding of expectations unique to the partner. Agreement on obligatory rules was associated with lower conflict, whereas understanding predicted greater conflict.
Although social influences are implicated in the development of body image, research has yet to address the roles of women’s sexual orientation and romantic partners’ weight statuses in predicting women’s body image. This study examines both heterosexual (n = 104) and lesbian (n = 144) women and their partners’ body mass indexes and body image using actor–partner interdependence models. The results indicated that lesbian women preferred larger body ideals than heterosexual women and that women’s ideal body preferences were not related to their partners’ weight status. However, both lesbian and heterosexual women’s perceptions of their actual body size were related to their partners’ weight status such that heavier women who had relatively thin partners were most at risk of perceiving themselves as overweight.
This study proposed that, among older adults, higher support and lower strain received from each of the four relational sources (spouse/partner, children, family, and friends) were associated with reduced loneliness and improved well-being and that loneliness might mediate the relationship between support/strain and well-being. Structural equation modeling was conducted using a national sample of adults aged 50 years and older (N = 7,367) from the Health and Retirement Study. Findings indicated that support from spouse/partner and friends alleviated loneliness, while strain from all the four sources intensified loneliness; higher support and lower strain from various sources directly and indirectly improved well-being, with indirect effects mediated through reduced loneliness. It was concluded that, in later life, various sources of support/strain engender distinct effects on loneliness and well-being, and loneliness serves as one of the psychological pathways linking support/strain to well-being.
In this behavioral observation study, we tested how individuals’ use of affiliative and aggressive humor (observer rated) impacted their romantic partners’ mood in a social support context. We also examined whether the attachment orientations of the humor-receiving partners moderated the humor effects. As predicted, support providers’ use of affiliative humor predicted pre- to post-discussion decreases in support recipients’ negative mood. Providers’ use of aggressive humor predicted increases in recipients’ negative mood. The deleterious effects of more aggressive humor were exacerbated in recipients who were more anxiously attached. Providers who used more affiliative humor were also more empathically accurate, and providers involved with more avoidantly attached partners and who used more aggressive humor were less judgmental and more validating of their avoidant partner’s behavior.
Mahoney and colleagues’ theorizing about the potential role of sanctity as a central feature of religion/spirituality is invoked to examine the relationships among sanctity of marriage, (un)forgiveness, sacrifice, and both positive and negative marital satisfaction. The study examined the perspectives of both members of 342 marital dyads using an Actor–Partner Interdependence Model and a multilevel path modeling. The results indicate that sanctity is related positively to marital satisfaction and negatively to martial dissatisfaction. Sanctity emerged as a strong predictor of marital quality even after accounting for forgiveness, unforgiveness, and sacrifice. Though sanctity is directly linked to positive marital satisfaction, the mediation effects via (un)forgiveness were not significant; however, a mediation effect via sacrifice was significant, which was related to negative marital quality.
Prior research finds that sexually permissive individuals are judged more negatively than nonpermissive peers, placing them at risk of social isolation. Based on the positive assortment principle (i.e., preferences for similarity in attributes in close relationships), we examined whether participants’ own permissiveness mitigated negative judgments of permissive others in the same-sex friendship context. College students (N = 751) evaluated a hypothetical same-sex target with either 2 (nonpermissive) or 20 (permissive) past sex partners on 10 friendship-relevant outcomes. Participant permissiveness attenuated some negative evaluations. However, preferences were rarely reversed, and no moderation was found in five outcomes, suggesting the role of permissiveness-based positive assortment is limited, and evolutionary concerns may take precedence. Partial support for the sexual double standard was also found.
This study tested the hypothesis that daily contact with close others during goal pursuit would activate relationally autonomous reasons and would also be associated with the corresponding levels of goal effort. We also hypothesized that the association would be strongest among highly relational and agreeable people. Participants (n = 49) completed self-construal and agreeableness assessments at a face-to-face session, then they completed daily reports of relational motives, contact with close and distant others, and goal effort daily for the next 6 days online. The results of hierarchical linear modeling analysis showed that contact with friends and family members were associated with the corresponding levels of effort among highly relational people. Only contact with parents was associated with the corresponding effort among highly agreeable people. Contact with friends and family was also associated with daily levels of relationally autonomous motives, but not relationally controlled motives. Theoretical and practical implications are discussed.
Research has documented social network instability among people with serious mental illness focusing on (1) psychiatric symptoms that interfere with social skills and interaction and (2) stigma, discrimination, and social rejection. However, the social network consequences of disruptive events that often accompany onset of serious mental illness (e.g., divorce, job loss, and residential instability) are seldom considered. In this study, the relative impact of symptoms, stigma, and secondary disruptive events on membership turnover was examined using data from 100 people experiencing first contact with the mental health treatment system. Findings indicated that disruptive events and, to a lesser degree, psychiatric symptoms predicted membership turnover. A theory of relationship and network dynamics in mental illness integrating insights from the psychiatric, labeling, and social network perspectives is proposed.
Relationships are strongly influenced by the perceptions of how one’s partner feels about oneself, yet little is known about the nature of these perceptions or how they relate to outcomes. This study introduces a construct: perceived inclusion of the other in the self (IOS-perceived). IOS-perceived extends the "inclusion of the other in the self" (IOS) model to incorporate one’s perception of the extent to which the partner includes one in his or her self-concept. This article proposes a mediational model in which perceptions of partner satisfaction lead to IOS-perceived, which in turn leads to IOS. Two studies, one including an implicit measure of IOS, provide strong support for the proposed model.
In two studies, we examined the role of country and individualism and collectivism as moderators of associations between attachment insecurities (anxiety and avoidance) and coping and social support. Study 1 examined the ability of anxiety, avoidance, and country to predict coping and social support variables in Mexico and the US. Anxiety, avoidance, and country had significant effects on coping and social support variables, but there were no significant interactions between the attachment dimensions and country. Study 2 examined the same variables as in Study 1, but also included measures of individualism and collectivism. The results were similar and support the universality of attachment theory but also show that high individualism and low collectivism are associated with stronger relations between attachment dimensions, on one hand, and with diversion coping and perceived social support, perhaps because these variables are related to the most salient aspects of collectivism: duty to one’s group and passive coping.
This study tested the prediction that spouses’ insecure attachment orientation would be negatively associated with relationship quality. It was further predicted that there would be indirect effects of attachment orientation on spouses’ relationship quality through interpersonal trust as well as indirect effects of attachment orientation on loneliness through spouses’ relationship quality. Predictions were tested on 225 married couples that completed measures of attachment orientation, personal commitment, dedication commitment, interpersonal trust, loneliness, and marital satisfaction. Tests of actor–partner interdependence revealed that insecure attachment (i.e., anxious and avoidant) was associated with lower relationship quality and that one partner’s insecure attachment was associated with his/her spouse’s report of lower relationship quality. Actor–partner mediator models revealed that interpersonal trust mediated the relationship between attachment orientation and relationship quality; insecure attachment was associated with lower levels of interpersonal trust and, in turn, lower relationship quality, both individually and dyadically. Similarly, relationship quality mediated the relationship between attachment orientation and loneliness; insecure attachment was associated with lower relationship quality and, in turn, higher levels of loneliness both individually and dyadically.
Prior research has established the importance of co-parenting for child outcomes, yet little is known about how co-parenting influences parents themselves. The current study expands on the prior literature by examining an important aspect of co-parenting, perceived parenting agreement, and exploring the longitudinal association of perceived parenting agreement with new parents’ depression, positive affect, and relationship satisfaction during the transition to parenthood. Using a dyadic approach, results indicated there were significant actor effects of parenting agreement on both mothers’ and fathers’ mental health outcomes, such that greater agreement predicted better subsequent mental health. Perceived parenting agreement was also significantly associated with subsequent relationship satisfaction for mothers only, such that greater perceived agreement by both the mother (actor effect) and the father (partner effect) predicted greater subsequent maternal relationship satisfaction. Our results suggest perceptions of parenting agreement are important for new parents’ mental health and maternal relationship satisfaction during the transition to parenthood.
Romantic partners’ emotions become coordinated in various ways and this may have implications for well-being (Butler (2011) Temporal interpersonal emotion systems: The "TIES" that form relationships. Personality and Social Psychology Review, 15, 367–393.). The present study uses a community sample of 44 committed heterosexual couples to examine whether cooperation, a generally beneficial relational process, is associated with emotional coordination and whether the pattern differs when men’s emotions are coordinated with their female partners’ prior emotions or vice versa. Using behavioral observations of cooperation and second-to-second measures of emotional experience during a face-to-face conversation, men showed the most positive emotional experience at high levels of mutual cooperation. As predicted, cooperation was associated with different coordination patterns for men and women, with high mutual cooperation predicting an inphase pattern for men (emotions changing in unison with their partners) and an antiphase pattern for women (emotions changing in opposite directions from their partners). Our results suggest that men and women may experience cooperation differently, despite engaging in similar behaviors.
The purpose of this study was to examine jealousy toward infidelity in bisexual individuals. Each participant completed an online survey including a forced-choice question regarding what distresses them more: the emotional aspects of the infidelity or the sexual aspects of the infidelity. Results supported the hypothesis: a higher percentage of bisexual men dating women reported being bothered by the sexual infidelity than bisexual men dating men, bisexual women dating women, and bisexual women dating men. Additionally, there was a gender by relationship orientation interaction where the traditional sex difference emerged when comparing women dating men and men dating women, but the sex difference disappeared when comparing women dating women and men dating men.
Within a dual-level model of personality, loneliness, and attitudes toward aloneness can be regarded as phase-specific adaptations that are influenced by personality traits. Therefore, we examined the associations between personality traits (i.e., the Big Five, sociotropy, and autonomy), loneliness, and attitudes toward aloneness in two samples of late adolescents (N = 1388 and N = 419). A specific pattern of associations was found that replicated across samples. Lower scores on agreeableness and stronger concerns about independence (i.e., greater autonomy) were positive predictors of both peer-related and parent-related loneliness. Extraversion was a predictor of lower affinity for and greater aversion to aloneness. The other personality traits were predictors of a particular type of loneliness or a specific attitude toward aloneness.
The present study examined how turning points reported by individuals in on-again/off-again (on–off) relationships reflected relationship trajectories. Participants (N = 581) completed an online Retrospective Interview Technique asking them to report on up to 10 turning points. Participants indicated their commitment level at each turning point. Based on the variations in commitment across turning points, five trajectories emerged. Trajectory groups were compared regarding relational stability factors. Results suggest that on–off partners with a steady-low commitment trajectory reported less stability than individuals with steady-high commitment. Additionally, partners in the fluctuating trajectory, which would seemingly represent less stability, reported moderate perceptions of their relationships, faring better than the low-steady commitment group. Overall, findings add to an understanding of how to best characterize on–off relationships.
Both social and individual factors play a role in shaping one’s diet and exercise habits. A total of 62 heterosexual couples reported on health behavior values (HBVs) and completed daily diaries assessing food intake and physical activity relative to their own normal behavior and the helpfulness of health-related influence from their partners. Repeated measures dyadic analysis showed that men in couples with high average HBV ate less than usual in response to positive partner influence. Also, in such couples, normal weight men engaged in more physical activity when positively influenced by their partners. However, normal weight men in couples with low average HBV engaged in less physical activity when influenced by their partners. Women who valued health less than their partners responded to partner influence by eating healthier. These results highlight the importance of considering both social and individual contributors to health behaviors.
This study tested young adults’ feelings of being caught between their parents as mediators of co-parental communication (i.e., supportive and antagonistic communication) and young adults’ mental health and relational satisfaction with parents. Participants included 493 young adult children from intact and divorced families. For participants from intact families, feeling caught mediated indirect effects for both supportive and antagonistic co-parental communication on satisfaction with mothers and mental health symptoms, though direct effects for supportive co-parental communication on all three outcomes remained. For participants from divorced families, however, feeling caught emerged as a mediator only of antagonistic co-parental communication and mental health symptoms. Collectively, the results suggest that feeling caught may function as a mechanism linking co-parental communication to children’s adjustment.
This article examines the effect of composition of friendship networks during early adolescence on the likelihood of entering an interethnic union among the children of immigrants. We analyze the panel data from the Children of Immigrants Longitudinal Study that followed 14-year-olds into their early 20s. We extend previous research by simultaneously examining the effect of the social context and personal networks and by broadening the type of unions under consideration (i.e., dating and cohabiting unions in addition to marriage). In line with hypotheses regarding opportunities and preferences, we found, first, that having an ethnically diverse friendship network positively affects the likelihood of entering an interethnic union. Second, the effect of the friendship network is equally strong for dating, cohabitation, and marriage. Finally, the effect of the social context on interethnic partner choice is not mediated by the friendship network.
While intuition suggests and much research has shown that people are attracted to advantaged individuals, the present study explored the conditions under which people might be attracted to disadvantaged individuals. We hypothesized that perceiving someone as unfairly disadvantaged can motivate attributions of positive personal characteristics and, consequently, judgments of heightened attractiveness. Seventy-eight participants were randomly assigned to read about a job applicant facing a fair or an unfair application process resulting in a competitive advantage or disadvantage. In support of our hypothesis, participants judged unfairly disadvantaged applicants (i.e., underdogs) and fairly advantaged applicants as more physically attractive and suitable as dates compared with fairly disadvantaged and unfairly advantaged applicants. These results highlight the role of situational factors in judgments of one’s attractiveness.
We utilized interdependence theory and conservation of resources to understand how relational sacrifices and hassles impact positive relationship quality constructs (i.e., satisfaction, closeness, and commitment) in romantic relationships (N = 164 couples; 328 individuals). Using daily diary data to examine actor and partner effects, we found that individuals’ sacrifices were positively linked with their own commitment but not with satisfaction or closeness. We also found that hassles were negatively linked with one’s own and one’s partner’s satisfaction and closeness but not with commitment. When examined together, sacrifices remained beneficial for one’s own commitment but only when increased sacrifices occurred on days with low hassles. We discuss the unique pathways of sacrifices and hassles, both on their own and considered together.
We examined the extent to which identifications of children’s friends across multiple contexts by both children and their mothers might differ from identifications made by both individuals working in concert as well as the sources of such differences. Interviews were conducted with 347 fifth-grade children and their mothers. A subset of 20 dyads also participated in qualitative interviews. Children and mothers created lists of children’s friends working separately and together. Individual completion and joint completion lists were compared to identify discrepancies. Qualitative participants reflected on sources of discrepancies. Discrepancies were predicted by ethnicity, child social problems, cross-gender and cross-ethnicity friendship status, and friendship context. Explanations for discrepancies suggested that discrepancies reflected both genuine differences in perspective and reporting error.
The adverse effects of loneliness on health and well-being accelerate with age, making it important to understand the relationship experiences that underlie loneliness in later life. The current study distinguished between emotional and social loneliness and compared their associations with parallel categories of positive and negative social exchanges in a representative sample of older adults. Given the high rates of marital loss in later life, analyses included comparisons of currently and formerly married individuals. The results revealed that emotional support and its negative counterpart (insensitive behavior) are particularly consequential for emotional loneliness among married participants. Companionship was associated with emotional and social loneliness among married and formerly married participants, whereas its negative counterpart (rejection) appeared to be particularly consequential for social loneliness among formerly married participants. The results underscore the value of a differentiated approach to older adults’ loneliness and social exchanges.
There is evidence that positive and negative social exchanges have different implications for various psychological outcomes, but research has been limited by a lack of multidimensional and parallel measures and underlying processes explaining the implications are not well understood. In the present longitudinal study, we address these gaps in the literature by using parallel measures of positive and negative social exchanges to predict both positive and negative aspects of emotional health in a sample of 113 first-year college students and by testing for loneliness as a mediator. Consistent with a domain-specific effects model, increases in negative exchanges were associated with increases in negative but not positive emotional well-being and vice versa. Changes in loneliness partially mediated these effects.
This investigation examined whether the strain of ignoring another depends on the other’s desirability as a relationship partner. Participants were asked to ignore or converse with highly likeable (polite and egalitarian) or highly unlikeable (rude and bigoted) acquaintance. They then completed a task in which good performance hinged on successful thought regulation. Study 1 revealed that participants performed worse in the self-regulatory task after conversing with (compared to ignoring) the unlikeable person but performed slightly better after conversing with (compared to ignoring) the likeable person. Study 2 replicated this crossover interaction using an alternative measure of self-regulation. The findings suggest that the use of silent treatment may allow one to conserve regulatory resources during aversive social interactions.
Perpetrating romantic infidelity is discrepant with how most individuals see themselves and theoretically should produce cognitive dissonance. Accordingly, perpetrators of infidelity should experience symptoms of dissonance (e.g. self-concept discrepancy, psychological discomfort, poor affect) and employ tactics that reduce these symptoms (e.g. trivialization). These hypotheses were tested in four experiments. In each experiment, participants were given bogus feedback indicating that they had acted either faithfully or unfaithfully during a prior romantic relationship (this manipulation was evaluated in experiment 1). Participants who received unfaithful feedback reported higher levels of self-concept discrepancy, psychological discomfort, and poor affect (experiments 2 and 4) and trivialized to a greater extent the importance of their ostensive infidelities (experiments 3 and 4). Experiment 4 further showed that trivialization significantly reduced self-concept discrepancy and psychological discomfort but not poor affect. These results are generally consistent with the view that infidelity is a dissonance arousing behavior and that perpetrators of infidelity respond in ways that reduce cognitive dissonance.
This study examines the implications of social networking web sites (SNSs) within romantic relationships. Specifically, Knapp’s (1978) stage model of relationships is examined through a new lens wherein the role of SNSs, specifically Facebook, is explored in the escalation stages of romantic relationships (i.e., initiating, experimenting, intensifying, integrating, and bonding). Furthermore, this study sought to discern the interpersonal and social implications of publicly declaring oneself as "In a Relationship" with another person on Facebook (i.e., going "Facebook official" or "FBO"). Ten mixed-sex focus groups were conducted. Analysis revealed that Facebook is one of the primary means of uncertainty reduction in the initial stages of relationship formation. College students consider FBO to be indicative of an increased level of commitment in relationships. Typically, relationship exclusivity precedes a discussion on becoming FBO, which occurs when the relationship is considered stable. Going FBO has implications for the public proclamation of one’s relationship status as described in Knapp’s model, and these results differ for men and women. Theoretical implications for the role of SNSs in romantic relationships are discussed.
Recent research has shown that attachment anxiety (a model of interpersonal relationships characterised by a fear of abandonment) is a good predictor of disinhibited eating and, in turn, body mass index. However, this association has yet to be explored within an eating episode. The present study investigated the effect of priming attachment security and attachment anxiety on food intake. Normal weight participants (N = 21) were primed with security and anxiety on separate occasions and given ad libitum access to a snack food. Priming anxiety led to a significantly higher food intake than priming security (p = .016). We suggest that participants consumed more food in response to the anxious prime in an attempt to manage the resulting feelings of insecurity. These results provide behavioural evidence for a link between attachment anxiety and disinhibited eating.
The dualistic model of passion (Vallerand (2010) On passion for life activities: The dualistic model of passion. In M. P. Zanna (Ed.), Advances in experimental social psychology (Vol. 42, pp. 97–193). New York, NY: Academic Press) regards passion as a strong inclination toward a self-defining activity that one loves, values, and in which one invests a substantial amount of time and energy. The model proposes two distinct types of passion, harmonious and obsessive, which predict adaptive and less adaptive outcomes, respectively. The present study examined the role of passion for an activity in relationship satisfaction and interpersonal conflict within the purview of the activity using a dyadic approach. We hypothesized that harmonious and obsessive passion would predict adaptive and less adaptive interpersonal outcomes, respectively. Coach–athlete dyads (N = 103) completed a questionnaire assessing harmonious and obsessive passions, relationship satisfaction, and interpersonal conflict. Results revealed both actor and partner effects of harmonious and obsessive passions and generally supported our hypotheses. Future research directions are discussed in light of the dualistic model of passion and interpersonal relationships.
In a sample of 484 emerging adults in dating relationships, we tested whether four intrapersonal characteristics (masculinity, femininity, neuroticism, and co-rumination) moderated the association between relationship satisfaction and depressive symptoms. Femininity demonstrated a moderating effect for women only; relationship satisfaction and depressive symptoms were more strongly associated in women with higher, versus lower, femininity. Co-rumination had a moderating effect for both sexes; relationship satisfaction was more strongly associated with depressive symptoms for individuals with higher, versus lower, levels of co-rumination. No moderating effects were found for masculinity or neuroticism. Findings support clinical and feminist theories that high femininity may place women at risk of dysphoric reactions to relationship distress and suggest that co-rumination may represent a risk factor for depression.
Variable- and person-oriented approaches were used to examine the affiliative and romantic experiences of adolescents in heterosexual romantic relationships and its associations with relationship conflict and jealousy on a sample of 194 romantic partner dyads. Variable-oriented findings indicated that affiliative experiences were associated with fewer and more constructively resolved conflicts, whereas romantic experiences were associated with more jealousy. Person-oriented analyses identified six distinct types of romantic relationships: four characterized by congruent perceptions and two characterized by incongruent perceptions. Adolescents in the consummate group (both partners reporting high levels of affiliation and romance) had the fewest but most constructively resolved conflicts. The discussion focuses on the developmental significance of dyadic similarity and the early developmental roots of diversity in romantic relationships.
People high in communal orientation care for the welfare of others based on others’ needs and desire similar care for themselves. The current study investigates the personal and interpersonal rewards associated with individual differences in communal orientation. We hypothesized that communally oriented people experience rewards from the positive emotion they feel from caring for others. Results from a 4-week daily experience study (N = 232) indicated that communally oriented people experienced greater self-esteem, greater satisfaction and love in their relationships, and greater love for humanity in daily life. These associations were mediated by greater daily positive emotion and the results were unique to tendencies to give care rather than the desire to receive it. We discuss implications for prosociality and well-being in close relationships and beyond.
Parental rearing styles are crucial for psychosocial adjustment both during childhood and adulthood. The current study examined whether (a) parental rearing styles predicted psychosocial adjustment in young adulthood, (b) this relationship was mediated by attachment styles, and (c) gender differences occur in these relationships. A total of 240 (103 male, 132 female, and 5 unknown) university students completed measures assessing parental rearing style, current attachment style, romantic relationship satisfaction, friendship quality, self-esteem, and social competence. Multigroup structural equation modelling, conducted separately by gender, revealed that parental rearing style predicted psychosocial adjustment during young adulthood. Furthermore, there was also evidence of gender differences and that self-models and other models of attachment mediated this relationship. Together, these findings reinforce the importance of perceived parental rearing style for subsequent psychosocial adjustment.