Attraction Flashcards
What feelings do meaningful relationships help protect us from?
- Loneliness.
- Hopelessness.
- Powerlessness.
- Alienation.
What did Bowlby’s study on infant attachment find?
- Bonds formed through social interactions with primary caregiver; sense of security.
- Attatchment styles differ as function of individual differences, relationship between carer and infant.
- Evolutionary angle: Separation anxiety as adaptive.
Describe Ainsworth (1978) strange situations study?
- Mother, baby and experimenter.
- Mother and baby alone.
- A stranger joins the mother and infant.
- Mother leaves baby and stranger alone.
- Mother returns and stranger leaves.
- Mother leaves, infant left completely alone.
- Stranger returns.
- Mother returns and stranger leaves.
Describe infant attachment styles using strange situation.
Secure
- Caregiver as secure base for exploration, doesn’t like departure.
Anxious-avoidant
- Little distress on leaving.
Anxious/ambivalent
- General anxiety and inconsistency of caregiver.
What are the adult attachment styles?
- Secure.
- Anxious-preoccupied.
- Dismissive-avoidant.
- Fearful-avoidant.
Describe attachment styles in realtion to sex.
Secure - Good sex.
Preoccupied - Sex as a tool driven by fear of loosing connection; also more risky sex.
Avoidant - Resist intimacy so avoid sex or seperate love and sex.
What is propinquity?
Physical closeness
Why is propinquity important?
The more we see and interact with people, the more likely they are to become our friends.
Describe Festinger et al. (1950) classic study.
- Residents were assigned to their apartments at random.
- Most were strangers when they moved in.
- Residents were asked to name three closest friends in the complex.
What are the findings of Festinger et al. (1950) classic study?
- People are much more likely to become friends in the same building.
- Closeness of rooms, being on the same floor are also predictors.
- 41% of next door neighbours indicated close friendship.
- Only 10% of those who lived on opposite ends of the hall indicated they were close friends.
Describe Beck et al’s. (2008) study.
- Followed freshman in first year.
- Randomly assined seat numbers at introductory session.
- A year later, students were presented with pictures of each other. They rated their liking of each other.
- Students liked people in their row and seated next to them more.
What is the mere exposure effect? (Zajonc, 1968)
Repeated exposure increases positive effect to simuli.
What is needed to fuel a growing relationship besides familiarity?
Similarity.
- A match between interests, attitudes, values, background or personality.
We like others who are similar to us.
Why is similarity important?
- Self-affirming: Desire to be liked and need for validation.
- Uncertainty reduction/ambiguity resolution.
- Reciprocity liking: Satisfying, rewarding and self-esteem boosting.
What is reciprocal liking?
just knowing that someone likes us fuel our attraction to the person.
- Can make up for the absense of similarity.
What is seen as attractive?
- Morphed faces to create an average.
- Symmetrical faces and bodies.
What is seen as attractive in men?
- Large jaw.
- Prominent brow ridges.
- Cheekbones.
What is seen as attractive in women?
- High cheek bones.
- Smooth skin.
What did Langlois et al. (2000) meta analysis find?
Attractiveness is associated with traits and behaviour:
- Extraversion.
- Self-confidence.
- Social skills.
Is attractiveness evolutionary?
Across 27 countries:
- Men value attractivness and health in women.
- Women value food, shelter and resources.
Procreation success strategies.
What did Gilmour (1988) find were the top 10 qualities in a romantic partner according to women?
- Successful.
- Leadership.
- Good job skills.
- Earning potential.
- Sense of humour.
- Intellectual.
- Attractive.
- Commonsensical.
- Athletic.
- Logical.
What did Gilmour (1988) find were the top 10 qualities in a romantic partner according to men?
- Attractive.
- Good in bed.
- Affectionate.
- Good social skills.
- Good homemaker.
- Stylish.
- Sensitive.
- Tasteful.
- Moral.
- Artistic.
What has research on the effect of attractivness on behaviour found?
- No gender differences - Physical attractiveness is an important factor in both men and women.
- Beautiful individuals are thought the be more sociable, assertive, extroverted, popular, sexual and happy.
What is the ‘beer goggles’ effect?
- Heightened perceptions of attractiveness resulting from intoxication.
- Alcohol can impair self-control and make people disinhibited.
What are the main findings from beer goggles research?
- Sober participants - Distracted by attrative faces.
- Mildly intoxicated participants - Found attractive and unattractive faces equally distracting.
What are the 7 types of love? (Sternberg & Barnes, 1988)
- Liking (intimacy alone).
- Compassionate love (intimacy and commitment).
- Empty love (commitment alone).
- Fatuous love (passion and commitment).
- Infatuation (passion alone).
- Romantic love (intimacy and passion).
- Consummate love (intimacy, passion and commitment).
What is the social exchange theory?
Social exchange theory holds how people feel about their relationship will depend on:
- Their perception of the rewards they will recieve from the relationship.
- Their perception of the costs they incur.
- Their perception of what kind of relationship they deserve and the probability that they could have a better relationship with someone else.
What is the equity theory?
Describes equitable relationships as the happiest and most stable.
What do inequitable relationships result in?
One person feels:
- Over benefited (lots of rewards, few costs, devoting little time and energy to the relationship).
- Under benefited (few rewards, lots of costs, devoting a lot of time and energy to the relationship).
