self disclosure Flashcards
self-disclosure
-The idea that relationship formation is built on trust with another person.
• Gradually revealing personal information such as thoughts, feelings and experiences
• Reveals their “true selves” leads to greater intimacy in romantic relationships, and ultimately to more satisfaction
Social penetration theory
Altman and Taylor(1973)
By gradually revealing emotions and experiences and listening to each other.
-increased trust
breadth and depth in social penetration theory
“Onion metaphor”
Altman and Taylor first described the process of self-disclosure as peeling back the layers of an onion, which possess both breadth and depth
Breadth” = The various facets of a person’s life,
such as work, family, community and hobbies.
“Depth” = the details concerning each of these
areas.
Both increase as trust is established
reciprocity
Can’t be all about receiving information.
Reis & Shaver (1988)
When an individual reveals something, hopefully the partner will respond in a way that is rewarding.
Balance means greater intimacy going forward
strength-research support
The concept of self-disclosure has been investigated in numerous studies.
For example, Sprecher and Hendrick (2004) studied heterosexual couples who were dating, and found that as self-disclosure increased, so did relationship satisfaction.
This was supported by another study of dating couples, conducted by Laurenceau et al. (2005).
They asked participants to write daily diary entries about progress in their relationships and found that self-disclosure and perception of disclosure in a partner led to greater feelings of intimacy in a couple. The reverse was true as well - couples who complained about lack of intimacy self-disclosed less often.
Such supporting research increases our confidence in the validity of self-disclosure as a factor leading to more satisfying relationships.
limitation-correlation vs causation
Most support for the concept of self-disclosure comes from correlational research.
While there is undoubtedly a link between self-disclosure and greater relationship satisfaction, cause and effect cannot be established, reducing the validity of the concept.
However despite this, the concept of self-disclosure has strong everyday life applications.
For example, it could be used in relationship counselling as it could help improve partners’ communication skills in intimate relationships.
By deliberately and skilfully increasing self-disclosure, couples can achieve higher intimacy and relationship satisfaction.
This shows that Social Penetration Theory can be used in the real world to enhance romantic relationship experiences.
limitation-issues and debates
Social Penetration Theory was developed based on research in a Western, individualist culture, so it may not apply to collectivist cultures.
For example, Tang et al. (2013) found that men and women in the USA tended to disclose more sexual thoughts and feelings than romantic partners in China;
However, despite this the level of relationship satisfaction was high in both cultures.
This shows that self-disclosure is not a requirement for successful relationships in all cultures suggesting that other factors e.g physical attractiveness could have an equal if not greater impact,, making Social Penetration Theory culturally biased.
