relationships-theory of romantic relationships

Question 1

what is social exchange theory

Answer 1

-describes romantic relationships using the economic terminology of profit
-it uses the minmax principle which is the idea that partners strive to maximise rewards and minimise costs
-notion of rewards and costs are subjective and changes as the relationship develops

Question 2

how do we assess how profitable out relationship is

Answer 2

-using comparison levels
-using comparison levels for alternatives

Question 3

what is CL (comparison level)

Answer 3

-used by partners to determine the extent to which they are profitting from the relationship
-CLs evolve based on a person’s experience of previous relationships
-Self-esteem plays a key role in CLs too: a person with high self-esteem will demand better rewards than a person with low self-esteem so the relationship is considered viable if the CL is better i.e. more profit, than past relationships

Question 4

what is comparison levels for alternatives

Answer 4

Comparison levels for alternatives (CLalt) are used to determine whether or not a new, different relationship would bring more rewards (and by extension, profit) than the current relationship

Question 5

what are the 4 stages of relationship development that SET proposes

Answer 5

sampling-the potential rewards and costs of all types of relationship, not just romantic relationships, are explored via direct personal experience or vicariously

barginining-this occurs early on in the relationship when each partner sets out what they expect and begins negotiations with their partner

commitment-individual devotes there attention to the relationship and costs and rewards become more predictable and relationship stabilises

institutionalisation-couple settles down and establishes mutuals norms and expectations

Question 6

what are 2 pieces of supporting evidence for SET

Answer 6

-kurdek
-sprecher

Question 7

what did kurdek find

Answer 7

asked homosexual and heterosexual couples to complete a questionare measuring relationship commitment. Found partners that where the most committed percieved more rewards and fewer costs and view alternatives as unattractive

-these findings match SET predictions

Question 8

what did sprecher find

Answer 8

-as the availibility of alternative partners increased levels of commitement and satisfaction decreased.
Comparison levels for alternatives were a strong predictor of commitment in a relationship.

Question 9

what is some apposing evidence for SET

Answer 9

clark and mills found that costs and rewards are only true of work interaction and not of romantic relationships.

this shows SET has poor explanatory power as it has unrealistic explanations of romantic relationships

Question 10

opposing evidence for SET

Answer 10

-rewards and costs are subjective and cannot be applied to each couple
-too reductionist- humans are complec unpredictable creatures so it may be difficult to apply an abstract construct to them

Question 11

what is equity theory

Answer 11

-economic model of relationships based on the idea of fairness for each partner
-each partner needs to experience a balance between there cost and there reward so both people in the relationship benefit
-equity is a subjective perception so this may lead to one person overbenefitting and the other person underbenefitting
-the overbenefitting partner may feel guilt and the underbenefitted partner may feel resentment
-

Question 12

what is some supporting evidence for equity theory

Answer 12

utne found in a survey of 118 married couples showed that perceived equity was a predictor of relationship satisfaction
this shows that equity is more important than equality in a relationship

Question 13

what is some opposing evidence for equity theory

Answer 13

Equity theory is not universal: Aumer-Ryan found that individualistic cultures prefer an equitable relationship whereas collectivist cultures expressed a preference for overbenefitting (found in both men and women)
this shows that this theory is culturally biased

Question 14

what are the 3 factors in Rusbults investment model

Answer 14

-satisfaction
-comparison with alternatives
-investments

Question 15

describe satisfaction

Answer 15

the degree to which the other person meets the individuals demands
satisfaction occurs when each partner sees large profits

Question 16

describe comparison with alternatives

Answer 16

the degree to which an individual needs could be met within al alternative relationship
if they could then commitment will be low

Question 17

what is investment size

Answer 17

the amount and importance of resources associated with the relationship and if such resources would be lost or decline if the relationship were to end

Question 18

describe intrinsic and extrinsic investements

Answer 18

intrinsic investements-things we put directly into the relationship
eg-energy, emotions
extrinsic investments-resources that didnt feature in the relationship and are now associated with it
eg-mutual friends, children

Question 19

supporting evidence for rusbults investement model

Answer 19

le and agnew found in a meta-analysis of 52 studies comprising a total of 11,000 participants from 5 countries which concluded that satisfaction, CLalt and investment size all predicted commitment

Question 20

supporting evidence for rusbults investment model

Answer 20

rusbult and malz found in there study of battered women that women where more likely to return to an abusive partner if they felt they had invested in the relationship and didnt have any better alternatives
so it provides a plausible explanation as to why people stay in abusive relationships.

Question 20

extra A03 for rusbults investement model

Answer 20

-investement models give correlational data so you cant establish cause and effect
its reductionist and over-simplified-relationships are complex

Question 20

what are the 4 stages of ducks model of relationship breakdown

Answer 20

1. intrapsychic processes
2. dyadic processes
3. social processes
4. grave-dressing processes

Question 21

what is intrapsychic processes

Answer 21

a person admits to themselves that they are dissatisfied with the relationship
it consists of a partners internal thought processes before confronting there partner

Question 21

what is the dyadic processes

Answer 21

the person confront there partner and voices there dissatisfaction
the partner initiating the breakup lists there complaints eg-the fact that they aren’t committed
they also rethink alternatives to there current relationship.

Question 21

what is the social processes

Answer 21

they make there relationship distress public and involve family and friends
they may be reinforcing the break up or encouraging reconciliation
they may start taking sides
it is now more difficult for the couple to mend there differences

Question 22

what is grave-dressing processes

Answer 22

they have left there partner and construct there version as to why the relationship broke down
they try to minimise there own faults and maximise there partners faults and paint there exs and uncooperative and unreasonable
however they try to show themselves as loyal in order to attract a new partner

Question 23

supporting evidence for ducks phase model

Answer 23

tashiro and frasier used self-reports for student between 18-35 years old and found that if ex-partners viewed the situation, rather than their own faults, as being responsible for the break-up, they often saw the ending relationships in a more positive light. This supports the grave-dressing approach where individuals construct there version of why the relationship broke down minimising there own faults and maximising there partners.

however, self-reports means pts could show social desirability bias

Question 24

what is some apposing evidence for ducks model of relationships

Answer 24

Dickson found that while friends and relatives tend to see teenagers’ break-ups as less serious and wouldn’t put much effort into reconciling partners, the ending of relationships by older couples is seen as more distressing and those close to the couple put more effort into bringing them back together. This shows that Duck’s model won’t necessarily apply to all couples, and therefore suggests that the model is unable to accurately predict breakdown in different types of relationship

Question 25

what are some useful application of ducks model

Answer 25

However, Duck’s model has useful applications, especially in relation to couples’ counselling. Couples may be advised to use different strategies depending on the phase they are currently in. For example, for a person in the intra-psychic phase it may be more useful to shift their attention to the positive aspects of their partner’s personality, while for a couple in the dyadic phase communication about dissatisfaction and ways to balance relationships is crucial. This shows that Duck’s model of relationship breakdown can be used successfully to help couples contemplating break-up to improve their relationships and stay together.

Question 26

weakness of ducks original relationship model

Answer 26

its an incomplete model as ducks revised models includes “resurrection phase” where people move beyond the pain and personal distress and experience personal growth. It also accounts for the fact that it is possible to return to earlier phases i

Question 27

issues and debates regrading ducks phase model

Answer 27

The model is based on relationships from individualist cultures, where ending the relationships is a voluntary choice, and separation and divorce are easily obtainable and do not carry stigma. However, this may not be the case in collectivist cultures, where relationships are sometimes arranged by wider family members, and characterised by greater family involvement. This makes the relationship difficult to end, which means that the break-up process will not follow the phases proposed by Duck. As a result, Duck’s model is culturally biased as it assumes that break-up process is universal, which is clearly not the case