theories of romantic relationships: duck's phase model

Question 1

describe the phase model of relationship breakdown (duck 2007)

Answer 1

• ending of a relationship is not a one-off event but a process that takes time
• goes through 4 distinct phases

Question 2

3 reasons for breakdown (duck 1999)

Answer 2

• lack of skills
• lack of stimulation
• maintenance difficulties

Question 3

2 categories of causes for breakdown (duck 1992)

Answer 3

• predisposing factors
• precipitating factors

Question 4

what do predisposing factors include?

Answer 4

internal factors

• emotional stability of one partner
• irritating or distasteful personal habits
• changing interests

Question 5

what do precipitating factors include?

Answer 5

external factors:

• reduced proximity
• other people (real or imagined)
• money

Question 6

what is each phase in duck’s model marked by?

Answer 6

one partner (or both) reaching a point at which their perception of the relationship changes, usually for the worse

Question 7

when does the road to break-up begin?

Answer 7

once a partner realises they are dissatisfied with the relationship and distressed about the way things are going

Question 8

what are the 4 phases in ducks’ model of relationship breakdown?

Answer 8

1. intra-psychic phase
2. dyadic phase
3. social phase
4. grave dressing phase

Question 9

what is the threshold in the intra-psychic phase?

Answer 9

• ‘i can’t stand this anymore’
• indicates a determination that something has to change

Question 10

what is the focus on in the intra-psychic phase?

Answer 10

cognitive processes in the dissatisfied partner

Question 11

describe the intra-psychic phase (6)

Answer 11

• dissatisfied partner worries about the reasons for their dissatisfaction, centring mostly on their partner’s shortcomings
• partners mulls their thoughts over privately
• may share them with a trusted friend
• weigh up the pros and cons of the relationship
• evaluate against the alternatives, including being alone
• begin to make plans for the future

Question 12

what is the threshold in the dyadic phase?

Answer 12

conclusion, ‘i would be justified in withdrawing’

Question 13

what is the focus on in the dyadic phase?

Answer 13

interpersonal processes between the two partners

Question 14

describe the dyadic phase (3)

Answer 14

• at some point they cannot avoid talking about their relationship any longer
• series of confrontations where relationship is discussed and dissatisfactions are aired
• if the rescue attempt fails, another threshold is reached

Question 15

describe the confrontrations / dissatisfactions in the dyadic phase? (4)

Answer 15

• characterised by aniety and hostility
• complaints of a lack of equity
• resentment over imbalanced roles
• rethinking of the commitment that kept the partners together

Question 16

what are the 2 possible outcomes of the dyadic phase?

Answer 16

• determination to continue breaking up the relationship
• renewed desire to repair it

Question 17

what might happen to self-disclosure in the dyadic phase?

Answer 17

• become deeper and more frequent
• partners express thoughts and feeling they had been withholding in the intra-psychic phase

Question 18

what is the threshold in the social phase?

Answer 18

dissatisfied partner concludes, ‘i mean it’

Question 19

what is the focus on in the social phase?

Answer 19

wider processes involving the couple’s social networks

Question 20

describe the social phase (6)

Answer 20

• break-up is made public
• partners seek support and forge pacts
• mutual friends and expected to choose a side
• gossip is traded and encouraged
• point of no return
• break-up takes on a momentum driven by social forces

Question 21

how might friends react to the break-up? (4)

Answer 21

• provide reinforcement and reassurance (‘i always said you were too good for him’)
• place the blame on one partner or the other
• hasten the end of the relationship by providing previously secret information (‘i didn’t want to mention this but…’)
• pitch in and try to help repair the relationship

Question 22

what is the threshold in the grave dressing phase?

Answer 22

• ‘it’s now inevitable’
• ‘time to get a new life’

Question 23

what is the focus on in the grave dressing phase?

Answer 23

the aftermath

Question 24

describe the grave dressing phase

Answer 24

• once the relationship is dead, it is buried by spinning a favourable story about the breakdown for public consumption
• allows partners to save face and maintain a positive reputation, usually the expense of the other partner, showing them in a bad light
• gossip plays an important role

Question 25

grave dressing phase (la gaipa 1982)

Answer 25

it is crucial that each partner tries to retain some 'social credit' by blaming circumstances, your partner or other people ie. everything and everyone but themselves

Question 26

how is a personal sstory created in the grave dressing phase?

Answer 26

- may differ from the public one - tidying up memories of the relationship - traits you found endearing in your partner at the start of the relationship may be reinterpreted in a negative way

Question 27

evaluation: RWA as it suggests ways in which relationship breakdown can be reversed

Answer 27

- useful as it recognises that different repair strategies are more effective at some points in the relationship - feature of the dyadic phase is communication; any attempt to improve this and wider social skills could be beneficial in fostering greater stability in the relationship - these insights can be used in relationship counselling to help people through difficult times

Question 28

evaluation: RWA (duck 1994)

Answer 28

recommends that people in the intra-pyschic phase could be encouraged to focus their worrying on the positive aspects of their partner

Question 29

evaluation: model is based on research into relationship breakdown in individualist cultures, especially the US (moghaddam et al. 1993)

Answer 29

- relationships in individualist cultures are generally voluntary and frequently come to an end (eg. divorce) - relationships in collectivist cultures are less easy to end and involve the wider family - whole conception of a romantic relationship differs between cultures - model's application would not be useful in all cultures

Question 30

evaluation: duck's model is an incomplete explanation of breakdown (rollie 2006)

Answer 30

- 5th phase after grave dressing: the resurrection phase - ex-partners apply to future relationships the experiences gained from their recently-ended one - progression from one phase to the next is not inevitable as it is possible to return to an earlier point in any phase - processes that occur in relationship breakdown (eg. gossip in social phase) are more important than linear movement from one phase to the next - original model does not account for the complexity of breakdown and its dynamic nature

Question 31

evaluation: underexplains the early phases of breakdown

Answer 31

- much research is retrospective - ps in research studies gnerally report their experiences a while after the relationship has ended, so what they recall might not be accurate or reliable - this is especially true of the early stages, which occurred longer ago - partners can be in the intra-psychic phase for a long time so recall of it may be particularly distorted - model may not explain the early part of breakdown processes as well as later phases

Question 32

evaluation: fatal attraction hypothesis is a better explanantion (felmlee 1995)

Answer 32

- focuses on *why* relationships break down - the trait that led to initial attraction may later be seen as undesirable

Question 33

evaluation: gender differences (akert 1998)

Answer 33

women have more desire to stay friends whereas men want to move on