Lecture 9: Interdependence Part 2 Flashcards

1
Q

velocity

A
  • The velocity with which we approach a desired goal is an important predictor of affective experience
  • Emotions are reactions to change
  • Satisfaction is based more on recent improvements (changes) in relationship quality than the overall quality of the relationship
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2
Q

marital satisfaction over time

A
  • Overall, marital satisfaction declines as the years go by
  • This doesn’t happen to everyone
  • About ¼ couples do not experience large declines in satisfaction
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3
Q

reasons for changes in marital satisfaction according to an interdependence perspective

A
  • Effort declines
  • Interdependence is a magnifying glass for conflict & friction
  • In intimate relationships, high access to weaponry
  • Unwelcome surprises
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4
Q

Deromantization

A

reduction in impressive management

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5
Q

behaviours of couples vs. strangers

A

Spouses display more negative and fewer positive behaviours towards each other than they do towards strangers

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6
Q

examples of unwelcome surprises

A
  • Fatal attractions
  • May discover undesirable things about our partner when adjusting to new circumstances or roles
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7
Q

construal level theory

A

Different mental representations of events based on the psychological distance of the event

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8
Q

Higher-level construal

A

psychologically distant events are thought of in abstract terms

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9
Q

Lower-level construal

A

psychologically near events that are thought of in concrete terms

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10
Q

Optimism

A

the tendency to expect good things to happen

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11
Q

should we be optimists or pessimists?

A
  • Optimism is good for a relationship
  • Optimists enjoy more satisfying relationships
  • The key is probably the expectation that inevitable difficulties can be resolved
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12
Q

2 relationship beliefs

A

destiny & growth beliefs

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13
Q

destiny beliefs

A

people are either compatible or they are not

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14
Q

growth beliefs

A

relationship challenges can be overcome

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15
Q

destiny beliefs and satisfaction

A
  • People with destiny beliefs are initially happier with their relationships
  • But when faced with conflict, satisfaction declines
  • Especially sensitive to signs that their relationship is “not meant to be”
  • Disengage from the relationship when there is a problem
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16
Q

growth beliefs and satisfaction

A
  • People with growth beliefs are constructive, optimistic, and committed in the face of conflicts
  • Fewer one-night stands, dating a partner for a longer period of time
  • Try to maintain the relationship when there is a problem
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17
Q

changes in CL

A

Satisfaction may go down when outcomes deteriorate or CL goes up

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18
Q

The Hedonic Treadmill

A

When we attain positive outcomes, our happiness levels may temporarily increase, but so do our expectations

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19
Q

variety

A
  • The extent to which events of a given valence vary in their context
  • Adaptation occurs to constant/repeated stimuli, not varying ones
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20
Q

Longitudinal study of happiness intervention

A
  • Students were told to repeat the same kind of acts every week for 10 weeks (low variety condition)
  • Or vary the kind of acts they performed (high variety condition)
  • In the high variety condition, happiness increased following intervention
  • In the low variety condition, happiness declined
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21
Q

applying the hedonic treadmill to relationships

A
  • Variety may indeed be the spice of relationship satisfaction
  • Maintain reasonable expectations & aspirations
  • Cultivate gratitude
  • Experimental manipulations cultivating gratitude improve relationship closeness
22
Q

what is the best predictor of stability?

A

commitment

23
Q

3 components of commitment

A

affective, cognitive, and conative

24
Q

affective commitment

A
  • Psychological attachment to the relationship
  • As interdependence grows, we become increasingly susceptible to strong emotional experiences triggered by partner
  • We may not be fully aware of the full extent to which this happens
    We may be surprised by the impact of separation
25
Q

cognitive commitment

A
  • Imagining oneself being involved with the partner in the distant future
  • Making plans and adapting a shared identity
26
Q

conative commitment

A

intention to persist in the relationship

27
Q

turbulence in relationships

A

In interdependent situations, we will inevitably encounter situations where partners’ needs conflict

28
Q

Relational turbulence model

A

periods of turmoil & dips in satisfaction as partners adjust to new interdependence

29
Q

consequences of commitment

A
  • Commitment can be conceptualized as a transformation of motivation
  • Shifting away from selfish motivations to focus on broader relationship concerns
  • Think in terms of “us” instead of “me” and “him”
  • What’s good for the patterns is good for the self; it reduces the cost of sacrifice, derives benefit from the partners’ positive outcomes
30
Q

motivated reasoning

A

Process information in ways that support relationship maintenance

31
Q

motivated reasoning includes

A
  • Faults into virtues
  • Seeing one’s relationship as better than everyone else’s
  • Unwarranted optimism about the future
  • Greater perceptions of control over the relationship
  • More benign interpretations of negative acts
32
Q

behavioural mechanisms

A
  • accommodation: greater willingness to respond to destructive acts with a constructive response
  • Greater willingness to forgive
  • Greater willingness to sacrifice
33
Q

investment model of commitment

A

satisfaction level + -> commitment level
quality of alternatives - -> commitment level
investment size + -> commitment level

34
Q

reciprocal influences

A
  • Commitment increases satisfaction through motivated reasoning
  • Commitment also decreases the perceived quality of alternatives
  • Greater inattentiveness/less vigilance towards desirable alternatives
  • May see this even at automatic, lower-order perceptual level
35
Q

inattention to attractive alternatives

A

When primed with romantic/sexual thoughts (e.g., kiss), more attentional adhesion to attractive faces for single, but not committed participants

36
Q

derogation of alternatives

A

Commitment predicts devaluation of attractive (threatening) but not unattractive (non-threatening) alternatives

37
Q

Commitment calibration hypothesis

A
  • Commitment maintenance response may emerge when the level of threat is commensurate with the level of commitment
  • We will not emerge when the level of threat is either higher or lower than the level of commitment
38
Q

Commitment calibration hypothesis study method

A
  • Ostensible goal of the study: evaluating new dating service
  • Create & evaluate dating profiles
  • Presented profile:
    Attractive desired-sex target or
    “Single and not currently involved”
  • Moderate threat condition: The algorithm may or may not have matched you
  • High threat condition: target chose you
39
Q

Commitment calibration hypothesis study findings

A
  • The moderately committed group confronted with a moderate threat devaluated the attractive target
  • The highly committed group confronted with a high threat devaluated the attractive target
40
Q

rewards and costs summary

A
  • We have seen that the tallying of rewards & costs is not as simple as initially suggested
  • Foregoing attractive alternatives can be seen as a cost that should decrease with dependence, but motivated reasoning processes discount the cost
  • With interdependence, we do not see ourselves as an entirely separate entity from our partner
  • Focus shifts from single-minded self-interest to broader relationship concerns
41
Q

interdependence and relationship decisions

A
  • We make relationship decisions with our partner in mind as well
  • We are less likely to initiate a breakup when we believe that our partner is highly dependent on the relationship
42
Q

equity in relationships

A
  • Fairness in a relationship
  • Each partner gains benefits from the relationship that is proportional to his or her contributions to it
  • The ratio of your outcomes divided by your contributions is equal to the ratio of your partner’s outcomes divided by your partner’s contributions
43
Q

under- vs. over-benefited partners

A
  • The under-benefited partner may feel frustrated, and the over-benefited partner may feel
    guilty
  • Seems to be particularly important for the division of household labour & childcare
  • But may not engage in strict cost accounting if the relationship is highly rewarding and both partners are prospering
44
Q

exchange relationships

A
  • Governed by explicit norms of even exchange
  • We keep track of others’ contributions
  • We expect immediate repayment for the benefits given and we’re more comfortable repaying others right away
45
Q

communal relationships

A
  • Governed by genuine concern for the welfare of the other
  • We avoid struct cost accounting
  • We do favours and make sacrifices without expecting explicit repayment
46
Q

does social exchange still apply in communal relationships?

A
  • Yes, the processes of social exchange still apply
  • Exchanges still take place in communal relationships, but they involve diverse types of rewards that are provided over a long span of time
  • People don’t need to “sweat the small stuff” in happy, highly rewarding relationships
  • But they may begin to do so if dissatisfaction looms
47
Q

progression bias

A
  • Dating preferences become less strict after a live interaction with a potential dating partner
  • We’re not always deliberate about making investments in a relationship
48
Q

progression bias study

A
  • We’re willing to overlook dealbreakers in favour of moving a relationship forward
  • In a “choose your own adventure” paradigm, it takes 4 common dealbreakers to reject a hypothetical partner
  • Additionally, we tend to underestimate our willingness to reject others by underestimating other-focused concern
49
Q

relationship inertia

A

stay together and slide into marriage due to the accumulation of investments

50
Q

what theory can help explain higher divorce rates among those who cohabitate?

A

relationship inertia