Investment Model Flashcards
What did Rusbult develop
He developed the social exchange theory by proposing the investment model. Rusbult saw commitment as a key factor is sustaining a relationship. Commitment depends on satisfaction, comparison with alternatives and investment
Strengths
Research conducted by van Lange supports this investment model. He studied students from Taiwan and Netherlands and found evidence that high commitment were related to high satisfaction levels, low quality of alternatives and high investment size
This model hella useful as it helps explain infidelity. This might occur if a person’s current relationship has low satisfaction and there is high quality alternative. Both factors lessening commitment levels and ultimately resulting in relationship ending. This model can also explain some people might stay in abusive relationships. Satisfaction is low, but there are no better alternatives. All alternatives are low. And the investment may currently be too high I.e. they have children
Weakness investment
Model has been criticised as it is very difficult to measure the factors like commitment, satisfaction and investment and quality of alternatives. Rusbult responded to this criticism and constructed an investment model scale that measures variables in a reliable and valid way. This features self reports, however this erected a problem of social desirability bias
Lin criticised this model as it don’t account for gender differences that may exist when looking at relationships. Lin found females tend to report higher satisfaction, poorer quality of alternatives and greater investment and stronger commitment in relationships compared to males
How to satisfaction contribute to commitment
Satisfaction is the positive or negative emotional experiences that a person in a relationship feels. Satisfaction is influenced by extent to which their partner fulfills and gratifies their individual needs in the relationship e.g. domestic/sexual needs. Satisfaction levels can be compared against previous relationships, e.g. if someone feels more satisfied in their present relationship than they did in previous ones, then this is a positive outcome
How does comparison of alternatives contribute to commitment
This is when a person might think about whether their important needs might be fulfilled better outside of the relationship. If there is an attractive alternative to the current relationship, the individual might leave the current relationship and not invest in it. If there are no good quality alternatives, the person might stay in their present relationship because there are no better options. The alternative option could even be that the person wants to be single, as this might seem a better alternative than being in a poor quality relationship.
How does investment size contribute to commitment
Investment size contributes to the stability of the relationship. It is a measure of the importance and extent of the resources that are attached to the relationship and they could be lost if the relationship were to end, examples include mutual friends, home etc.
Partners invest in their relationship and create a strong foundation for the future and this could be costly to break. Investment size is a powerful psychological force which motivates people to continue with their relationship, especially if they have put in a great deal of time and effort into the relationship.
What is intrinsic and extrinsic investment
Intrinsic investment - Direct investment such as money, energy, emotion
Extrinsic investment - Investment that was not present at the start of the relationship, but has developed over time e.g. children, shared memories
What is commitment level
This refers to the whether the relationship will persist and continue. If commitment is high and both partners are happy, the relationship should continue and survive. Commitment should involve equity (a fair input from both partners). There would be high losses if someone was to leave the relationship with the following traits, this would be very risky.
