Factors Affecting Attraction - Self Disclosure

What is self disclosure?

• Self disclosure refers to revealing personal information about yourself to another person

• We tend to disclose more to people we like, and we like people more when they disclose to us

• This process signals trust - it suggests the person believes the information will remain private within the relationship

The role of self disclosure in relationship development…

• Altman and Taylor’s social penetration theory explains how self disclosure helps relationships progress. As relationships develop, the breadth and depth of disclosure increases, moving from superficial topics to more intimate, personal ones

• Breadth → The range of topics that can be discussed. Early on, some subjects (eg past trauma, political views) may be avoided. As trust grows, more areas become open for discussion

• Depth → The level of intimacy in the information shared. This might include painful memories, deeply held beliefs or personal experiences

Reciprocity…

• For a relationship to develop healthily, there must be reciprocal self disclosure

• Both partners must take turns sharing and responding appropriately

• This builds mutual understanding and emotional closeness

Attributions behind disclosure…

• People assess why someone is disclosing

• If someone shares personal info with everyone, they may seem less genuine or special, which lowers their attractiveness

• On the other hand, if a person discloses just to us, it suggests they value the relationship, increasing their attractiveness

Appropriateness of disclosure…

• Although self disclosure generally strengthens relationships, context matters

• Revealing too much, too soon (TMI, too much information) or breaking social norms can make someone appear awkward or unattractive

• Timing, relevance and sensitivity are all key in how disclosure is received

AO3 - Sprecher and Hendrick (2004)

Studied heterosexual dating couples and found strong correlations between several measures of satisfaction and self disclosure. This shows that men and women who used self disclosure were happier in their relationships

AO3 - Real life applications

Research into self disclosure can help people struggling in their relationships to improve how they communicate by having them learn to go beyond ‘small talk’ so they can increase intimacy, satisfaction and commitment with their partners. This shows how studies in this area can have a beneficial effect on society

AO3 - Cultural differences in self disclosure

Tang et al (2013) reviewed the research into sexual self disclosure and noted that Americans self disclosed significantly more sexual thoughts and feelings than Chinese people, showing that there are issues generalising this theory to all people as people from individualist and collectivist cultures do not reveal the same level of information about each other in relationships

AO3 - Correlational research

Just because self disclosure is linked to more relationship satisfaction it does not mean that it is the thing that is ultimately responsible for relationship satisfaction. Eg someone may love their rich partner who is constantly talking about their inner most feelings but ultimately, they may not be with them if hey were poor