Chapter Nine: Attraction and Close Relationships

Social Anxiety Disorder

A disorder characterized by intense feelings of discomfort in situations that invite public scrutiny

Need for Affiliation

A desire to establish social contact with others

Utility Theory

Stress sparks the desire to affiliate only when being with others is seen as useful in reducing the negative impact of the stressful situation

Loneliness

A feeling of deprivation about existing social relations

Intimate loneliness

When someone wants but does not have a spouse, significant other, or best friends to rely on for emotional support, especially during personal crises

Relational loneliness

When someone wants but does not have friendships from school and work and family connections

Collective loneliness

When someone wants but does not have remote relationships and social identities derived from alumni and clubs

Hikikomori

A form of social withdrawal that affects a significant number of young adults in Japan

Mere Exposure Effect

The phenomenon whereby the more often people are exposed to a stimulus, the more positively they evaluate that stimulus

Group Attractiveness Effect

The perceived physical attractiveness of a group as a whole is greater than the average attractiveness of its individual members

What-is-beautiful-is-good Stereotype

The belief that physically attractive individuals also possess desirable personality characteristics

Matching Hypothesis

The proposition that people are attracted to others who are similar in physical attractiveness

I-sharing

When two people at a common event bond over reactions, they feel as though theyve shared a subjective experience

Complementarity Hypothesis

People seek others whose needs oppose their own

Reciprocity

A mutual exchange between what we give and what we receive

Hard-to-get Effect

The tendency to prefer people who are highly selective in their social choices over those who are more readily available

Non-selective

having poor taste or low standards

Too selective

having very high taste

Psychological Reactance

The proposition that people are highly motivated to protect their freedom to choose and behave as they please

Expression of love

how happy are they when the disclosure comes before sex compared to after

Jealousy

A negative emotional state that arises from a perceived threat to ones relationship

Empty Shell Marriage

A marriage that revolves around coordinated daily activities, but emotional attachment is weak and psychological needs go unmet

Stimulus Stage

Attraction is sparked by external attributes such as physical appearance

Value Stage

Attachment is based on similarity of values and beliefs

Role Stage

Commitment is based on the enactment of such roles as husband and wife

Social Exchange Theory

A perspective that views people as motivated to maximize benefits and minimize costs in their relationships with others

Investment

Something a person puts into a relationship that they cannot recover if the relationship ends

Equity Theory

The theory that people are most satisfied with a relationship when the ratio between benefits and contributions is similar for both partners

Trust-Insurance System

A natural, unconscious system employed by people in relationships in which they keep a tally of costs and benefits in order to detect and repair possible imbalances

Exchange Relationship

A relationship in which the participants expect and desire strict reciprocity in their interactions

Communal Relationship

A relationship in which the participants expect and desire mutual responsiveness to each others needs

Secure Attachment

When babies cry in distress when the mother leaves them and beams with delight when she returns

Avoidant-Insecure Attachment

When babies dont react much when the mother leaves or when she returns

Anxious-Insecure Attachment

When babies cling and cry when the mother leaves and greets her with anger or apathy upon her return

storge

friendship love

mania

demanding and possessive love

Intimacy

The emotional component, which involves liking and feelings of closeness

Passion

The motivational component, which contains drives that trigger attraction, romance, and sexual desire

Commitment

The cognitive component, which reflects the decision to make a long-term commitment to a loved partner

Companionate Love

A secure, trusting, stable partnership

Excitation Transfer

The process whereby arousal caused by one stimulus is added to arousal from a second stimulus and the combined arousal is attributed to the second stimulus

Self-Disclosure

Revelations about the self that a person makes to others

Social Penetration Theory

Relationships progress from superficial exchanges to more intimate ones

Sexual Orientation

A persons preference for members of the same sex (homosexuality), opposite sex (heterosexuality), or both sexes (bisexuality)

T/F: People seek out the company of others, even strangers, in times of stress.

True

T/F: Infants do not discriminate between faces considered attractive and unattractive in their culture.

False

T/F: People who are physically attractive are happier and have higher self-esteem than those who are unattractive.

False

T/F: When it comes to romantic relationships, opposites attract.

False

T/F: Men are more likely than women to interpret friendly gestures by the opposite sex in sexual terms.

True

T/F: After the honeymoon period, there is an overall decline in levels of marital satisfaction.

True