Week 2: Attraction Flashcards
What is the instrumentality principle?
All else equal, we are attracted to others who help us achieve goals that are important to us right now
i.e. ppl who are able to fulfill your goals
What are the characteristics of the instrumentality principle?
- One person can fulfill many of these needs
- Most attracted to people who can fulfill your needs (need/goal fulfillment)
What is the fundamental basis for attraction?
Basic assumption: We like those who reward us
Either b/c they treat us well, or simply b/c they are present when positive events occur
What is self-disclosure?
The process of revealing personal info about oneself to someone else
One of the defining hallmarks of intimacy
What is the theory of social penetration?
As r/s develop, partners become MORE INTIMATE by INCREASING: 1) BREATH and 2) DEPTH of their verbal communication
What are the reasons why self-disclosure breeds liking and contentment in close r/s?
- We reveal more personal info to those we like
- We also tend to like others more b/c we’ve opened up to them
- Reciprocal self-disclosure builds trust
- We’re liked more by others when we self-disclose
What is the concept of proximity?
We tend to like those who live and work near us (b/c we’re more likely to meet them)
Why is proximity important?
- Small distances have a larger infl. on our r/s than most ppl realise
- CONVENIENCE: Proximity is rewarding, distance is costly
- Partners who are close at hand are able to provide us: MORE BENEFITS at LESSER EXPENSE, than distant partners
What is familiarity?
Mere exposure, or repeated contact, with someone usually increases our liking for them
What is the concept of similarity?
We tend to like those who share our:
- Age, race, sex, religion, and social class
- Attitudes and values
- Personalities
What is the stimulus-value-role theory?
Suggests that there are 3 diff. types of info about new partners that gradually unfold over time (stimulus, value and role)
What are some examples of stimulus type information in the stimulus-value-role theory?
Stimulus type info: Surface-level characteristics
E.g. Age, CCA, physical attractiveness/looks
What are some examples of value type information in the stimulus-value-role theory?
Value type info: Attitudes, values
E.g. Religion, political orientation
What are some examples of role type information in the stimulus-value-role theory?
Role type info: Agree on basics of parenting, housekeeping etc.
What are fatal attractions?
Occur when smth about a new partner that is appealing and attractive gradually becomes one of the most obnoxious, irritating things about the partner
Does perceived or actual similarity affect attraction more?
Perceived > actual similarity
We tend to like others…
- …who exhibit desirable qualities that we wish we had
- Sometimes prefer a partner who is someone we’d like to become to one who more closely resembles who we really are now
What is one way “opposites” may attract?
Complementarity
- Good for goal achievement in r/s
- Partners occasionally “fit tgt” better when they behave differently e.g. dominant & submissive
Why is similarity attractive?
1) Personally rewarding: Validating to encounter others who share our PoV
2) Low effort interaction: We anticipate friendly interaction w/ similar others
3) Rewarding interaction: Interaction w/ similar others tend to be more fun
What is the concept of reciprocity?
Most of us pursue partners who are likely to return our interest
What is the equation for desirability of a potential partner?
Desirability = Physical attractiveness x Probability of acceptance
Based on the concept of reciprocity, what types of people are most attractive to others?
Selective > Easy to get > Hard to get
What is the concept of physical attractiveness in attraction?
Looks matter and there is a bias for beauty (“what is beautiful is good”)
What is the concept of “what is beautiful is good” wrt physical attractiveness?
PA people are perceived to have other positive traits
Physical appearance triggers an expectation of a likeable, socially-skilled person
What are the characteristics of attractive faces?
1) AVERAGE - possessing dimensions that are neither too large/too small
2) SYMMETRICAL - 2 sides of the face being v similar to one another, indicates good genes/health
Beautiful faces combine the best features of indiv. faces in a BALANCED, WELL-PROPORTIONED whole
What is the matching hypothesis?
We tend to pair up with others whose desirability (mate value) is similar to our own
What is the hypothesised mechanism for matching?
Most desirable ppl pair up and are off the mkt
Less desirable ppl pair off with the most desirable ppl who remain
What are people’s strategies during the matching process?
Start off with MAXIMISATION, but ultimately attain a SATISFICING outcome
How does beauty in the eye of the beholder vary?
We differ substantially in how much we find a person attractive even on first meeting
This diff. gets larger as we get to know people better
How do partner’s PA vary with each other’s in r/s?
Higher matching on PA when partners get tgt more quickly
Matching on PA:
Right away > 6 months > 12 months
What are barriers in attraction?
Theory of psychological reactance
Romeo and Juliet effect (does not exist) – social network’s approval of r/s
What is the theory of psychological reactance?
States that when people lose their freedom, they strive to regain it
What is the (nonexistent) romeo and juliet effect?
The more parents interfere with their romances, the more love teenagers feel for their partners
What are the 3 types of data that r/s scientists use to predict r/s outcomes?
1) Data on indivs.
- Traits, values, preferences, etc (self-reported data)
2) Data on dyads
- Satisfaction, conflict behaviour, etc
3) Data on situations
- Stress, attractive alternatives, etc
