self disclosure

what is self disclosure

Revealing personal information about yourself. Romantic partners reveal more about their true selves as their relationship develops. These self-disclosures about one’s deepest thoughts and feelings can strengthen a romantic bond when used appropriately”

This plays a vital role beyond initial attraction and, used effectively, can help the course of true love run smoother.

experiment

Social Penetration Theory (Altman & Taylor, 1973)

A theory of how relationships develop. 

Relationships develop through the gradual process of revealing your inner self to someone else and involves the reciprocal exchange of information between intimate partners. 

As partners disclose more and more information, they ‘penetrate’ more deeply into each other’s lives, and gain a greater understanding of each other. 

what is Breadth & Depth of Self Disclosure

Self disclosure has two elements - breadth and depth (Altman and Taylor). 

As both of these increase, romantic partners become more committed. 

Depenetration describes how dissatisfied partners self-disclose less as they gradually disengage from the relationship.

what is Reciprocity

Reis and Shaver (1988) suggest that for a relationship to develop, there needs to be a reciprocal element to disclosure, as well as the breadth and depth.

Once you have disclosed something, hopefully your partner will respond in a way that is rewarding, with empathy and their own thoughts/feelings. 

A balance of self disclosure increases feelings of intimacy and deepens the relationship.

How self disclosure affects attraction

Collins and Miller (1994) suggest that self disclosure has been shown to influence attraction in 3 ways:

1. those who engage in ‘intimate disclosures’ are generally liked more that those who do not.

2. people disclose more to those they like in the first place.

3. the act of self-disclosure makes us like the person we are speaking to

Self-disclosure works best when it is reciprocal (it is returned)

Evaluation of Self Disclosure Supporting evidence -

what is Sprecher et al procedure. (2013)

Looked at the effects of self-disclosure reciprocity (vs. non-reciprocity) on liking in initial encounters. 

Involved pairs of unacquainted individuals participating in a structured self-disclosure activity. 

Participants in some pairs took turns asking and answering questions in two interactions (reciprocal disclosure). 

In other pairs, participants either disclosed or listened in an initial interaction (non-reciprocal disclosure) and then switched disclosure roles in a second interaction. 

Supporting evidence - Sprecher et al. (2013

findings

Participants who disclosed reciprocally reported greater liking, closeness, perceived similarity, and enjoyment of the interaction after the first interaction than participants who disclosed non-reciprocally. 

These differences remained after the second interaction, even though participants in non-reciprocally disclosing had switched roles (i.e., the disclosers became listeners) and therefore experienced extended reciprocity. 

Concluded that turn-taking self-disclosure reciprocity in the acquaintance process increases the likelihood of positive outcomes (e.g., liking).

real world application

Evaluation of Self Disclosure

Romantic partners probably use self disclosure deliberately to increase intimacy

Hass & Stafford (1998) found that 57% of homosexual men and women said that open and honest self disclosure was the main way they maintained and deepened their committed relationships

Partners who limit communication to small talk can learn to use self disclosure to have more satisfied relationships

what are Cultural Differences

Type of self disclosure can vary according to culture

Tang et al. (2013) reviewed research into self disclosure and concluded that in the USA (individualist culture) more sexual thoughts and feelings are disclosed than in China (collectivist culture) for both males and females. There was no difference in levels of satisfaction. 

Theory is limited as it is based in findings from western cultures – not necessarily generalisable to others