L7 - Rusbults investment model

Question 1

what is rusbults investment model

Answer 1

factors which affect amount of commitment affecting decision to stay or leave
extension of SET

Question 2

what are the 3 factors which affect commitment levels

Answer 2

satisfaction levels
comparison/quality of alternatives
investment size

Question 3

what is satisfaction

Answer 3

positive or negative emotional experiences
extent that partner fulfils individual needs
can be compared against previous rs

Question 4

what is comparison/quality of alternatives

Answer 4

whether needs are fulfilled better outside of rs
attractive alternative - leave rs - no investment
no good quality alternatives - stay in rs
single - better alternative than poor quality rs

Question 5

what is investment size

Answer 5

contributes to stability of rs
measure of importance and extent of resources which could be lost if rs ends
e.g. mutual friends, home etc
invest = strong foundation = costly to break - motivation to continue rs

Question 6

what are the two types of investment

Answer 6

intrinsic - money, energy, emotion
extrinsic - wasn’t there at the start, developed over time - children, shared memories

Question 7

what is commitment level

Answer 7

based on consequences of satisfaction, alternatives, investment
whether the rs will persist/continue
high commitment = happy partners = continues rs

Question 8

2 strengths of rusbults investment model

Answer 8

• explains infidelity - low satisfaction, high quality of alternatives = low commitment levels. or explains abusive rs, low satisfaction but low quality of alternatives and high investment e.g. children
• applied to different rs - investment model scale questionnaire to gay rs, found all factors important for commitment so relevant in other types of relationships

Question 9

2 weaknesses of rusbults investment model

Answer 9

• difficulty to measure factors, responded with investment model scale but involved self reports so social desirability bias. may pretend to be more satisfied to look good and show they have a good rs
• does not account for gender differences. Lin found females tend to have higher satisfaction, lower alternatives, higher investment and stronger commitment compared to males so gender should be taken into account