8. RELATIONSHIPS (Rusbult’s Investment Model) Flashcards
What is Rusbult’s investment model?
A model explaining why people stay in relationships based on satisfaction, investment, and lack of better alternatives.
What are the three factors of Rusbult’s investment model?
Satisfaction, comparison with alternatives, and investment.
How does satisfaction influence commitment in a relationship?
If a relationship has more rewards than costs, individuals perceive it as satisfying and are more likely to stay committed.
What is meant by comparison with alternatives?
The extent to which an individual believes their needs might be better fulfilled outside their current relationship.
Why might someone perceive no relationship as a better alternative?
If they believe being single would be more beneficial than staying in their current relationship.
What is investment in a relationship?
Anything an individual would lose if the relationship ended, such as time, energy, shared friends, and possessions.
How does investment influence commitment?
The more investments an individual has in a relationship, the more likely they are to stay committed due to the cost of losing those investments.
What is commitment level?
The likelihood that an individual will persist in their current relationship, based on satisfaction, investment, and quality of alternatives.
What did Le and Agnew’s meta-analysis find?
Across 52 studies, satisfaction, comparison with alternatives, and investment size all predicted relationship commitment.
Why is Le and Agnew’s study a strength of the investment model?
It provides strong evidence supporting the model with a large, diverse sample across different cultures and relationship types.
What is a limitation of research into the investment model?
Most studies are correlational, meaning they cannot establish cause and effect between the model’s factors and commitment.
How does the investment model explain why people stay in abusive relationships?
Victims may lack alternatives or have too much invested (e.g., children, shared property), making leaving costly.
Why is the investment model’s explanation of abusive relationships a strength?
It highlights why people stay in unsatisfying or harmful relationships, demonstrating its real-world applicability.
What is a limitation of the investment model regarding future plans?
It overlooks the impact of future investments and motivations, making it an oversimplified explanation of commitment.
Why might the investment model be considered oversimplistic?
It does not account for future investments and long-term planning, which also influence relationship commitment.
