Relationships

What is self disclosure

Revealing personal info about yourself onto a new partner

• low risk: small talk

• high risk: painful memories, fears, wishes

Social penetration theory

Gradual process revealing your inner self to someone

• when one partner reveals something, it’s a sign it their needs to be reciprocated

AO3: Special Selection

• Research Support

Waynforth & Dunbar: content analysis -

• 42% of men sought a youthful mate + advertised themselves as having more resources than women did

• Females tended to advertise themselves as physically attractive more than men

AO3: Special Selection

Partner preference has changed due to the changing norms of sexual behaviour

• Bereczkei et al: states that as women have more financial independence, they no longer need a man for resources

• Mate preferences are therefore a combination of evolutionary and cultural factors

AO3: Special Selection

• Issues and Debates

• Reductionist: educes complex human behaviours like mate choice and long-term relationships to simple evolutionary drives such as reproduction and survival

• Alpha bias: exaggerates differences between men and women

  • viewpoint reinforces outdated, sexist stereotypes about gender and relationships

Outline the exchange theory

• Walster et al: both partners need to profit equally from the relationship

  • lack of equality = one partner overbenefits

    • inequity may feel natural at the start but as time passes there will be less enjoyment

    • cog change may occur: partner experiencing inequity might accept things like abuse as the norm

What did Duck theorise

• break up is not a one off event and continues through diff phases

List Duck’s relationship breakdown

1. intra psychic

2. dyadic

3. social

4. grave dressing

Intra-psychic

• cog process whereby the pros and cons of the relationship are weighed

  • focus on reasons they are dissatisfied, cantering around partners shortcomings

Dyadic

• series of confrontations over time

• outcomes: determination to break up/renewed desire to rescue relationship

Social

• break up made public

• mutual friends encouraged to pick sides - friends offer reassurance

  • usually point where relationships cant be saved

Grave dressing

• story of relationship will show partner in neg light, saving rep of another

AO3: Duck’s Model

• methodological issues

• conducted retrospectively, what they recall may not be accurate or reliable, ignore details from earlier stages

AO3: Duck’s Model

• incomplete model

• Rollie & Duck: added fifth phase - communication

  • possible to return to any of the earlier stages

• model provides limited explanation of why relationships break down as it doesnt take into account the complexity of each unique relationship

AO3: Duck’s Model

• issues and debates

• individualistic societies will differ to collectivist cultures when it comes to relationship breakdown