Ch 11: interpersonal attraction and relationships Flashcards
What do evolutionary psychologists suggest about what people seek in a mate?
men seek fertile women (young and healthy), and women seek wealthy men, and who can protect (social status)
what do men and women agree across culture is the most important quality for a mate? (2)
love and mutual attraction
What do people find universally attractive? (evolutionary theory)
signs of youth and wealth (physical attractiveness), signs of “healthy genes” (symmetrical face features, no genetic abnormalities), and signs of “reproductive health” (waist to hip ratio)
what are Universals of physical attractivness? (3)
(clear complexion, bilateral symmetry, and average features)
What are cultural variabilities for physical attractiveness?
body weight (hip to waist ratio)
propinquity effect
physical nearness has been found to be a significant factor in the development of relationships
more-exposure effect
the more often we are exposed to a stimulus the more likely we are to view that stimulus positively (more we are around someone the more we will like them)
familiarity
people are more attracted to that which is familiar
Similarity-attraction effect
we like others who are like us, similar in age, social class, race, education etc
the matching hypothesis
we like others who valiate out points of view and who are similar in thoughts, desires and attutudes
do americans have positive or negtaive correlations between satisfaction and attractiveness?
positive
do Ghanians have positive or negative correlations between satisfaction and attractiveness?
negative
relational mobility
refers to the perceived amount of opportunity that an individual has for forming new relationships
What is high relational mobility and which culture does it affect?
Independent cultures: people have much freedom in deciding who they will have a relationship with, social environments allow for this
what is low relational mobility and which context does it affect?
interdependent context, people have far less freedom in deciding who they will have relationships with (determined by circumstances)
what are the three distinct areas of love?
intimacy, passion, commitment
intimacy
includes caring, closeness and emotional support, communication, connectedness
passion
comprised of physiological and emotional arousal, characterized bu excitement, happiness that accompany intense physical attraction
commitment
refers to the cognitive process and decision to commit to love another person and the willingness to work to keep that love over the course of your life
what are cultural variations of intimacy?
western couples experience more intimacy, especially in self disclosure, than east asian couples
what are cultural variation in passion?
Westerners report higher passion for romantic partners than east asians
what are cultural variations in commitment?
feelings of commitment were found to be stronger in asian than in the west
what are risk factors for early sexual activity?
early puberty maturation, porr parental monitoring, poor parent-child communication, sextually active peers
why do emerging adults not wait until marriage to have sex?
later marriage
what are predictors of divorce?
poor education, economic disadvantage, role overload, not attending religious services, experiencing multiple life stressors
what are the four horsemen in troubled relationships?
criticism, contempt, defensiveness, stonewalling (tuning partner out)