Chapter 9: Interpersonal Attraction Flashcards
What is social anxiety disorder?
characterized by intense feelings of discomfort in situations that invite public scrutiny (Leary &
Kowalski, 1995). One very familiar example is public-speaking anxiety, or “stage fright”—a performer’s worst
nightmare. If you’ve ever had to make a presentation only to feel weak in the knees and hear your voice quiver, you
have endured a hint of this disorder
What is need for affiliation?
The desire to establish and maintain many rewarding interpersonal relationships
What is loneliness? When does it happen?
A feeling of deprivation about existing social relations
o Loneliness is triggered by a discrepancy between the level of social contact a person has and the level he or
she wants (Peplau & Perlman, 1982).
o The less social contact people have, the lonelier they feel (Archibald et al., 1995).
o Loneliness is most likely to occur during times of transition or disruption—as in the first year at college, after a romantic breakup, or when a loved one moves far away. Surveys show that people who are unattached are
lonelier than those who have romantic partners, but that those who are widowed, divorced, and separated
are lonelier than people who have never been married.
o the loneliest groups in American society are adolescents and young adults 18 to 30 years old
What is the desire to belong?
Desire to form social relationships is fundamental - we need to be part of stable, healthy bonds with family members, romantic partners, and friends in order to function normally.
Why do we feel the desire to belong?
Aids survival
People who feel supported by close relationships are happier, healthier, and at lower risk for psychological disorders and premature death.
People come together in adversity (snowstorm, power outage)
Schachter (1959) participants waiting to get shocks preferred to wait with others
Live longer
Evolutionary perspective
Children- bonding; Adults = reproduction
Cooperation- protection, success as hunter/gatherers
What are the pros and cons of need to belong?
- deep attachment (pro)
- threats (con)
What are the four main factors in attraction?
- Proximity
- Similarity
- Reciprocity
- Physical Attractiveness
What is the proximity effect?
o Single best predictor of whether two people will get together is physical proximity or nearness.
o Leon Festinger and his colleagues (1950) studied friendship patterns in married-student college housing and found that people were more likely to become friends with residents of nearby apartments than with those who lived farther away.
What is the mere exposure effect?
o Proximity does not necessarily spark attraction, but to the extent that it increases frequency of contact
o The phenomenon whereby the more often people are exposed to a stimulus, the more positively they
evaluate that stimulus.
o Ex: the girl in the lecture hall experiment
How is similarity a factor in attraction?
In attitudes
In personality
In appearance
Hinsz (1986) Study: Participants rated facial similarity of photographs of couples or random pairs
Results: Actual couples rated as more similar than random pairs
Perceived similarity vs actual similarity
Tidwell, Eastwick, & Finkel (2013): Speed-Dating Study
Assessed similarity before and after each date
Perceived similarity – compared self-ratings to ratings of partner
Actual similarity – compared self-ratings of each partner
Results: perceived similarity (not actual)
romantic liking
What is perceived similarity?
compared self-ratings to ratings of partner
What is actual similarity?
compared self-ratings of each partner
Why does similarity influence attraction?
Facilitates smooth interactions (similar attitudes, less conflicts of interest)
Similar others have qualities we like; dissimilar others are “unreasonable.”
We dislike people who are dissimilar to us even more than we like people who are similar
We expect similar others to like us
Reciprocity- we tend to like those who like us
Do opposites attract? Explain.
Condition for opposites:
- Commitment is low and plans on remaining low (a fling; represents ‘adventure’)
- Reassured the other person likes them
ALSO: If participants want a committed relationship, they choose a similar partner.
However, if they feel a low level of commitment to the relationship, they favor dissimilar partners
What is reciprocity as a factor of attraction?
Reciprocal Liking
We like people who like us
#1 indicator of attraction across all samples (mutual attraction)
Self-fulfilling prophecy: if we believe another person likes us, we behave in more likable ways:
Greater self-disclosure, more agreeable, warmer, more eye contact
What is self-fulfilling prophecy?
if we believe another person likes us, we behave in more likable ways:
Greater self-disclosure, more agreeable, warmer, more eye contact
What is the halo effect?
The halo effect is a type of immediate judgement discrepancy, or cognitive bias, where a person making an initial assessment of another person, place, or thing will assume ambiguous information based upon concrete information
We THINK that attractive people are…
Happier Warmer More healthy More outgoing
More mature More intelligent More sensitive
More confident More successful
What are the assumptions about attractive people?
Highly attractive people do develop good social interaction skills and report having more satisfying interactions with others.
This involves a self-fulfilling prophecy:
The beautiful, from a young age, receive a great deal of social attention that in turn helps them develop good social skills.
True/False
Physical attraction is not important in early stages of a relationship
False
Physical attraction is important in early stages of relationship development
True/False
Men value physical attractiveness more than women
False
Contrary to popular beliefs, men and women equally value physical attractiveness
What is what-is-beautiful-is-good stereotype?
The belief that physically attractive individuals also possess desirable personality characteristics.
§ Research shows that good-looking people do have more friends, better social skills, and a more
active sex life—and they are more successful at attracting a mate (Rhodes et al., 2005). Yet beauty is not related to objective measures of intelligence, personality, adjustment, or self-esteem.
What is the matching hypothesis in attraction?
The proposition that people are attracted to others who are similar in physical attractiveness.
What is the complementarity hypothesis?
which holds that people seek others whose needs “oppose” their own— that people who need to dominate, for example, are naturally drawn to those who are submissive (Winch et al., 1954).
o Gian Gonzaga—a researcher for eHarmony, the online dating service that matches people according to
similarities—debunked the complementarity hypothesis, noting that while opposites may seem exotic at first
glance, over time the differences become difficult to negotiate (McCarthy, 2009).
Explain the hard-to-get effect
The tendency to prefer people who are highly selective in their social choices over those who are
more readily available.
Which upsets men and women more? Sexual infidelity or emotional infidelity?
Women are more upset with emotional infidelity whereas, men are more upset with sexual infidelity
What is an intimate relationship?
A close relationship between two adults involving emotional attachment, fulfillment of
psychological needs, or interdependence
Intimate relationships often involve three basic components:
- feelings of attachment, affection, and love;
- fulfillment of psychological needs;
- interdependence between partners, each of whom has a meaningful influence on the other.
Explain the stimulus-value-role (SVR) theory
According to one perspective, relationships progress in order through a series of stages. For example, Bernard
Murstein’s (1986) stimulus-value-role (SVR) theory says there are three:
1. the stimulus stage, in which attraction is sparked by external attributes such as physical appearance;
2. the value stage, in which attachment is based on similarity of values and beliefs;
3. the role stage, in which commitment is based on the performance of such roles as husband and wife. All three factors are important throughout a relationship, but each one is said to be first and foremost during only one stage.
