Duck's Phase Model of Relationship Breakdown Flashcards
AO1 and AO3
Who created the model and when?
Duck, 2007
What does Duck argue about relationship breakdowns?
That they don’t end according to a one-off event, but rather through a process that takes time and goes through four phases
What is the first phase?
Intrapsychic phase
What occurs in the Intrapsychic phase?
When one partner has thoughts of dissatisfaction, but they do not tell their partner about the thoughts
What’s the second phase?
Dyadic phase
What occurs in the Dyadic phase?
The unhappy partner informs their partner of the thoughts, they may argue, and it’s decided they will be kept private - they may however seek relationship counselling
What’s the third phase?
Social phase
What occurs in the Social phase?
The couple informs friends and family of the difficulties in the relationship, and the couple begins dividing their property and responsibilities (i.e children, joint housing)
What is the fourth phase?
Grave-dressing phase
What occurs in the Grave-dressing phase?
The relationship is now over. Each partner ‘dresses the grave’ of their relationship, by minimising their role in the breakdown.
What’s a strength of the model?
It has supporting research evidence from Duck (2001) who found that participants who suggested they were willing to make the relationship work, also reported being critical of their previous partner as part of their breakdown. This suggests that individuals do present themselves in a positive light, as an ego-defense mechanism, as suggested by the Grave-dressing phase (phase four).
What’s a limitation of the model?
The model is incomplete, as Rollie and Duck (2006) added a fifth resurrection phase in which ex-partners begin to use what they learned from their previous relationships to prepare for future relationships. This suggests people use past mistakes to prepare for new relationships to avoid another relationship breakdown, as predicted by the resurrection phase
What’s another strength of the model?
It has practical applications, which is when a theory can be applied to real-life situations. This is because it can help identify how to save a relationship by developing maintenance strategies. For example, it’s useful for counsellors as they could use cognitive therapy in the Intrapsychic phase to focus on remedying private thoughts.
