Human Relationships Flashcards
Discuss (or Evaluate) a biological approach to personal relationships definition/ explanation
Natural Selection
Human attraction is rooted in natural selection, favoring traits that enhance reproductive success.
Attraction is primarily a physiological response involving neurotransmitters, hormones, and possibly pheromones.
Neurotransmitters:
- attraction leads to dopamine rich areas of the brain being induced “reward system”
-> drives feelings of obssesion and intense focus
- Helen Fishers “biochemical love cocktail” explains how neurotransmitters like dopamine, noradrenaline and seretonin lead to euphoria and heightened energy
Role of Hormones:
- Transition from attraction to attachment marked by feelings of comfort and security.
- Oxytocin and vasopressin = released during intimate behaviours = trust, security, long term commitment
Limitations:
- Correlational nature of studies: No definitive cause-and-effect relationships.
- Reliance on animal models, limiting generalizability to humans.
Discuss (or Evaluate) a biological approach to personal relationships study 1
Fisher
AIM: To investigate a possible link between dopaminergic brain regions/systems and the early stages of romantic love
PROCEDURE:
Participants: A self-selected sample of 10 female and 7 male students from New York State University, aged 18-26 years old (mean age = 20 years). All participants reported that they were ‘in love’ (time spent together from a range of 1-17 months with a mean of 7 months)
Participants were placed in an fMRI scanner and shown a photograph of their romantic partner followed by a distraction task and then a ‘neutral’ photograph of an acquaintance with whom they had no emotional connection
- This was repeated six times
- The researchers got what Fisher calls “a beautiful picture of the brain in love”, showing activity in the brain’s reward system
FINDINGS:
The researchers found that the brain’s reward system was particularly active when the lovers looked at pictures of the object of their love - that is, increased activity in the areas of the brain with high levels of dopamine neurons
they also found that the more passionate they were, the more active the brain’s reward circuitry was
CONCLUSION:
This is in line with our knowledge of the brain’s reward system and the role of dopamine in motivation. The data from the fMRI scans supported a correlation between the attitudes towards the lover and brain activity. According to Fisher, romantic love is not an emotion, but rather a motivation system - a need or a craving - designed to enable lovers to mate. Fisher claims that specific brain systems have evolved to motivate individuals to mate. This could perhaps explain why attraction is normally linked to increased energy, focused attention, obsessive following, sleeplessness, and loss of appetite. Dopamine is behind the intense motivation to win a specific mating partner in the early stages of human romantic love. In this way, humans are very much like other animals.
Discuss (or Evaluate) a biological approach to personal relationships fisher strengths
The findings support previous research into the role of dopamine in substance addiction so it is interesting to see how romantic love may fall under the same framework of craving and withdrawal
The use of fMRI clearly shows a link between dopaminergic areas of the brain only when the photograph of the romantic partner was shown which increases the internal validity of the study i.e. Fisher really was measuring the effect of romantic love on the brain
Discuss (or Evaluate) a biological approach to personal relationships fisher strengths limitations
It could be argued that a sample with a mean age of 20 years are more likely to be socially active and involved in pleasure-focused activities than an older sample which would mean that the ‘pleasure centre’ of their brains would be more receptive to dopamine
There could be other explanations for the activation of the dopamine-rich areas of the brain being active during the fMRI e.g. excitement at taking part in a study; curiosity as to the outcome of the study, so Fisher cannot claim cause-and-effect from her findings
Discuss (or Evaluate) a biological approach to personal relationships study 2
Wedekind
AIM: carried out a study to see to what extent MHC alleles play a role in mating behavior. They are inherited from both of our parents – and they are codominant. That means we end up with both immune systems. He argued that our “smell” is based on our MHC and it is best for a woman to choose a mating partner who has a different smell in order to maximize the immune system of her child.
PROCEDURE:
double-blind experiment
neither the researcher nor the participants were aware of which t-shirt they were being exposed to at any point in the study in order to minimize researcher bias in the experimenters and demand characteristics in the participants
recruited a group of 49 women and 44 men, with a wide range of MHC genes
gave each man a clean T-shirt and asked him to wear it for two nights
To ensure a strong body odor, he gave the men supplies of odor-free soap and aftershave and asked them to remain as “odor neutral” as possible
they were also forbidden to eat spicy food.
After the men returned the shirts, Wedekind put each one in a plastic-lined cardboard box with a sniffing hole on top.
The women were scheduled to return at the midpoint of their menstrual cycle when women’s sense of smell is at its best, and each was presented with a different set of seven boxes.
Three of the seven boxes contained T-shirts from men with MHC similar to the woman’s own
three contained T-shirts from MHC-dissimilar men; and one contained an unworn T-shirt as a control. The women were asked to rate each of the seven T-shirts as pleasant or unpleasant.
FINDINGS:
the women he tested were more likely to prefer the scent of men with dissimilar MHC
although we might argue that this is strong evidence that MHC determines whom we find to be attractive, that would be a reductionist approach to relationships.
Discuss (or Evaluate) a biological approach to personal relationships wedekind evaluation
pros
- double blind experiment = minimises demand characteristics
cons
- reductionist = over-simplified, ignoring sociocultural and cognitive factors
- sample not representative bc they were similar in age and culutre, and only heterosexual couples
Discuss (or Evaluate) a biological approach to personal relationships theory eval.
pros
- bridges gap between evolutionary explanations and neuroscience
cons
- much evidence is correlational (difficult to establish causal relation)
- studies are often highly artificial (studied in a lab)
Discuss (or Evaluate) a cognitive approach to personal relationships. defintion / explanation
- Focuses on the role of mental processes (e.g., thoughts, beliefs, schemas, perceptions) in forming, maintaining, and evaluating relationships.
- Emphasizes how cognitive mechanisms influence interpersonal dynamics and attraction.
Key Concepts:
- Similarity-Attraction Model:
- People are attracted to those they perceive as similar to themselves in traits like:
- Age, religion, cultural background, personality, physical attractiveness.
- Perception of similarity fosters compatibility and validation of values and beliefs, enhancing attraction.
- Schema Theory & Bowlby’s Internal Working Model (IWM):
- Early attachment experiences shape mental representations (schemas) that influence future relationships.
- The IWM includes three components:
- Expectations of attachment figures and their behavior.
- Perceptions of self-worth and lovability.
- Models of how self and others relate in relationships.
- Halo Effect:
- A cognitive bias where perceptions of physical attractiveness influence broader judgments of personality traits and compatibility.
- Attractiveness may lead to assumptions of other positive traits, influencing relationship formation.
Significance:
- Explains how cognitive processes and biases shape relationship dynamics, satisfaction, and conflict resolution.
- Highlights the influence of early experiences on adult relational patterns.
Discuss (or Evaluate) a cognitive approach to personal relationships study 1
Markey and Markey
Aim: To investigate the extent to which similarity is a factor in the way people choose a partner
Procedure:
The researchers asked a large self-selected sample to fill out a questionnaire to determine the psychological characteristics, values, and attitudes of their ideal romantic partner. Then they were asked to describe themselves. A follow-up study was then conducted and used a self-selected sample of 106 young couples (or 212 heterosexual males and females). The participants were asked to indicate their own as well as their partners personality characteristics.
Findings:
The first study showed that the way participants described themselves was similar to what they were seeking in an ideal partner.
The second study found that the couple with the most harmonious romantic relationships have romantic partners with similar characteristics, but not all.
Showed that total similarity in a couple may be desired but it is not ideal for long-term harmony
Discuss (or Evaluate) a cognitive approach to personal relationships strengths
- Unlike biological theories, cognitive theories account for personal differences in attraction.
- Many of the studies are high in ecological validity
Discuss (or Evaluate) a cognitive approach to personal relationships study 2
Hazan and Shafer
Aim: To to see if partners in adult romantic relationships also experience an attachment process like an infant and their caregiver.
Procedure:
To study this theory, they put together a love quiz. This love quiz ran in a local newspaper, the Rocky Mountain News, and asked people to send in their answers.
There were two parts to the quiz – the first looked at attachment style from the participants’ childhoods, and the second was an anonymous questionnaire about the participants’ beliefs on love.
-> The questionnaire asked about fundamental aspects of a relationship (e.g. the importance of trust) and dealbreakers in relationships (like cheating and jealousy).
Looked at about first 600 responses
42% were married, and 31% were dating someone.
Findings:
59% of the respondents demonstrated a secure attachment style
25% showed an anxious-avoidant pattern
19% showed an anxious-ambivalent pattern
The securely attached individuals had parents who were readily available, attentive, and responsive
People who were anxious had parents that were unresponsive, rejecting, and inattentive
People who were anxious-ambivalent had parents who were only sometimes responsive, and generally out of step with their needs.
Conclusion: Romantic love is a process that shares important characteristics with early attachment relationships. They found that differences in adult attachment are related to how one sees themself and others. There is some correlation but it is not deterministic.
Discuss (or Evaluate) a cognitive approach to personal relationships limitations
- Some of the constructs are difficult to measure. It is not, for example, possible to identify one’s “internal working model.”
- Factors influencing relationship formation are impossible to isolate under natural conditions.
- The approach may be considered overly simplistic when not used in combination with other approaches to understanding human relationships.
Discuss (or Evaluate) a cognitive approach to personal relationships Markey and Markey strengths
- Relatively large sample size
- Both partners involved
Discuss (or Evaluate) a cognitive approach to personal relationships Markey and Markey limitations
- Self-reported so influenced by demand characteristics
- Based on young American students - can’t be generalized
- correlational and can’t establish cause-and-effect relationships
Discuss (or Evaluate) a cognitive approach to personal relationships Hazan and Shafer strengths
- Large sample size
- Real-world relevance
- questionnaires were anonymous > control for social desirability effect (dont answer based on societal expectations)
Discuss (or Evaluate) a cognitive approach to personal relationships Hazan and Shafer limitations
- Self-selected sample
-> not representative
-> participants were motivated to take part in study which may create a similar variable between them > could influence findings - Self-reported data - subject to demand characteristics
- Study only shows one culture, only uses heterosexual couples: not representative
- difficult for people to articulate how they feel in love relationships
- unlikely to have perfect memory of their love experiences or nature of their relationship with their parents (especially in their pre-school years)
Discuss (or Evaluate) a sociocultural approach to personal relationships strengths
- valuable insights of external factors
- reduces Western-centric bias
- high ecological validity (directly refers to real-life situations / our being)
Discuss (or Evaluate) a sociocultural approach to personal relationships limitations
- argument difficult to seperate from biological and cognitive approach eg. the cognitive approach argues that we look for people that validate our sense of self > makes sense that most people would find sharing cultural values more attractive than those who dont
- Difficulties in generalization: Findings may not apply across all cultures due to diversity in social norms, values, and practices
- Social desirability bias: Participants may alter their responses to align with cultural expectations or perceived social norms.
Discuss (or Evaluate) a sociocultural approach to personal relationships definition/explanation
- The sociocultural approach focuses on how environmental, cultural, and societal factors influence relationships. It examines the role of social norms, cultural expectations, and globalization in shaping attraction and relational behaviors.
- Zajonc’s Mere Exposure Effect explains that repeated exposure to someone increases liking, as familiarity fosters attraction. This helps explain why relationships often form in shared environments like schools or workplaces.
- Cultural norms shape perceptions of attraction. Buss’s cross-cultural research (1989) revealed that:
- Western cultures prioritize love and physical attractiveness.
- Non-Western cultures emphasize family alignment and social status.
- Globalisation is blending individualistic and collectivistic values, but cultural norms still strongly influence relationship formation and maintenance.
Discuss (or Evaluate) a sociocultural approach to personal relationships study 1
Zajonc
Aim: to investigate the role that the mere exposure effect plays in the formation of a relationship.
Procedure: Participants, university students, were shown photos of male faces. Participants were told they were taking part in a study of visual memory. The participants were shown each photo for two seconds. The photos were shown at different rates of frequency in different groups. Each time participants saw the photo, they were asked to rate how much they would like the man on a 7 - point scale.
Results: when participants were exposed to the image more frequently, their rating of the likeability of the man was significantly greater than only seeing the photo once.
Discuss (or Evaluate) a sociocultural approach to personal relationships Zajonc strengths
highly controlled environment where researchers could operationalize the frequency of participants being exposed to the photos to produce empirical results
Discuss (or Evaluate) a sociocultural approach to personal relationships Zajonc limitations
(ethical concerns with using deception, this helped to avoid demand characteristics as participants did not know the true aim of the study)
- the ecological validity is questionable as the extent to which the study is predictive in real-life encounters between people is questionable
- The study would need to be replicated under naturalistic conditions to strengthen its reliability.
Discuss (or Evaluate) a sociocultural approach to personal relationships study 2
Buss
Aim: investigating how culture factors into the formation of relationships.
Procedure:
- 37 samples taken from 33 countries
- Participants completed two surveys, First survey: Collected biographical data
- Asked about:
1. Preferred age to marry.
2. Preferred age difference between self and spouse.
3. Who should be older in a couple.
4. Preferred number of children.
- Participants rated 18 characteristics (e.g., kindness, financial prospects, physical attractiveness) on importance using a 4-point scale:
-> 0 = Irrelevant
-> 3 = Indispensable
Second survey:
- Presented 13 characteristics
- Participants were asked to rank them in order of desirability in a mate.
- Surveys were administered in the native language of each participant.
- Back-translation was used to ensure accuracy and eliminate discrepancies between translations and the original English version.
Findings:
- In almost all cultures
1. women ranked financial prospects as more important than males
2. men preferred younger mates while women preferred older mates
3. males rated chastity as more important than women did
- Differences in cultures:
1. love was ranked first in the US
2. Love was ranked 7th in South Africa
3. Further ranking of aspects like intelligence and education also greatly differed.
Discuss (or Evaluate) a sociocultural approach to personal relationships Buss strengths
- the study was one of the largest cross-cultural studies, meaning that the study has high reliability as a large sample size was used and that results can be generalized
- back-translation: ensures no researcher bias, all questions were properly understood by participants
- The researchers used surveys which provided them with quantitative data.
