Summary

Question 1

Define self-disclosure

Answer 1

Describes the action of revealing personal information about oneself, for example your dislikes, hobbies or interests.

Question 2

Describe the difference between inter-sexual selection and infra-sexual selection

Answer 2

Inter-sexual selection describes the strategies which members of one sex may use to select another sex e.g. females look for resources in men, whereas intra-sexual selection refers to members of the same sex compete with one another to mate or reproduce.

Question 3

List all the stages of Duck’s phase model

Answer 3

Infra-psychic phase
Dyadic phase
Social phase
Grave-dressing phase
Resurrection phase

Question 4

Describe a limitation of research into Duck’s phase model

Answer 4

Research can be ethically sensitive. People may not want to be reminded of the stressful, emotional times of the previous break ups. It can also be seen as an invasion of privacy. Therefore ethical issues of protection of harm, right of privacy and confidentiality must be considered when conducting this research.

Question 5

Define a parasocial relationship

Answer 5

One-side relationship between a person and a prominent, well-known individual, usually a celebrity who is unaware of the other’s existence.

Question 6

List the different levels of parasocial relationships

Answer 6

Entertainment-social
Intense-personal
Borderline pathological

Question 7

Which childhood attachment type is most likely to form a parasocial relationship.

Answer 7

Insecure-resistant as they are concerned that others will not reciprocate their desire for intimacy, therefore they instead seek out distant individuals who will not reject them.

Question 8

Identify the features of Rusbult’s investment model.

Answer 8

Satisfaction model
Comparison with alternatives
Investment size

Question 9

What application does Rusbult’s investment model have to society?

Answer 9

Can explain why partners choose to stay in abuse relationships. Rusbult and Martz (1995) asked refugees why they stayed with abusive partners. They said they felt great commitment to these relationships as their investment was great and the economic alternatives were poor. Therefore the Rusbult’s investment model has good explanatory power for abusive relationships.

Question 10

Identify and describe the stages that social exchange theory proposes relationships develop through.

Answer 10

Sampling stage - here rewards and costs are explored from either observing others or testing them in your own relationship.
Bargaining stage - this is at the beginning of a relationship when a partner starts an exchange of rewards and costs and begins to notice what is most profitable.
Commitment stage - this is when your relationship is stable because the rewards keep increasing whilst the costs keep decreasing.
Institutionalisation - At this stage the rewards and costs have been firmly established and a partner feels like they’re able to settle down into a relationship.

Question 11

What are the different factors that influence a person’s attraction to their partner?

Answer 11

Self-disclosure
Physical attractiveness
Social demographics

Question 12

Describe commitment

Answer 12

Refers to romantic partners intention to stay in a relationship because they feel it has a long-term future. The factors that influence a persons sense of commitment are their satisfaction level, comparison with alternatives and their size of investment in the relationship.

Question 13

What are the different levels of the filter theory?

Answer 13

Social demography
Similarity in attitudes
Complimentarity

Question 14

One limitation of the social exchange theory?

Answer 14

Ignores that some partners desire equity. Hatfield et al (1984) found that couples in more equitable relationships were more satisfied than ones where a partner felt either under or over-bearing. This suggests that the equity theory may be more valid in explaining relationships.

Question 15

What are the various way of dealing with inequity in a relationship?

Answer 15

Dealing with it is known as realignment. Two ways of doing this:

Behavioural - where over benefitted partner works hard to make the relationship more equitable by doing more for the under benefitted partner.

Cognitive - where the under benefitted partner revises their perceptions of the rewards and costs involved in their relationship so they see their relationship as more equitable.

Question 16

Describe the matching hypothesis

Answer 16

Proposed by Walster et al (1966). It states that we form relationships with individuals of similar social value. This includes physical attractiveness - something that is particularly important in choosing romantic partners. The theory states that people assess their own physical attractiveness and then make ‘realistic choices’ by selecting the best available potential partner who is of a similar level of attractiveness, in order to avoid rejection.

Question 17

How does absence of gating affect virtual relationships?

Answer 17

A gate refers to any obstacle which prevents a relationship from forming or progressing in face-to-face relationships e.g. stammer, lack of physical attractiveness, social anxiety. McKenna and Bargh (1999) propose that the absence of these gates in virtual relationships allows there to be more focus on self-disclosure rather than distracting superficial features. This also allows shy or unattractive people to have a chance at developing relationships.

Question 18

Explain the difference between depth and breadth in terms of self-disclosure

Answer 18

Breadth describes the range of topics that can be discussed. At the start of a relationship, both breadth and depth are fairly narrow: An individual will share information about some topics like hobbies and preferences while other topics will be off-limits (limited breadth). They may also share information in a limited amount of detail (depth). As trust deepens, breadth and depth both deepen and partners feel secure sharing a wider range of information in more detail.

Question 19

Describe the difference between intrinsic and extrinsic resources.

Answer 19

Intrinsic resources refer to the resources you put directly into a relationship e.g. self-disclosure or money, whereas extrinsic resources are the resources which evolve as the relationship develops e.g. children, memories