Psychology - Human Relations - Interpersonal Relations
Flashcard: Fisher et al. (Biochemical Love Cocktail)
Aim: To explore brain activity related to romantic love.
Method: True experiment with interviews, questionnaires, and fMRI scans.
Sample: 17 individuals (10 females, 7 males) who were intensely in love.
Procedure: Participants completed interviews and questionnaires about romantic love and underwent fMRI scans while viewing images of their beloved and neutral images.
Findings: Activity in the brain’s reward system (dopamine-rich areas) when viewing the beloved, suggesting that love activates motivation systems rather than just emotion.
Conclusion: Romantic love is a drive, not just an emotion, potentially developed to encourage mating.
Strengths: High control, multiple methods enhancing validity.
Limitations: Artificial setting limits real-life application; correlational nature restricts causation claims.
Flashcard: Markey & Markey (Similarity Attraction Model)
Aim: To investigate the role of similarity in partner selection and relationship satisfaction.
Method: Questionnaire-based, correlational study.
Sample: Self-selected undergraduate students and 106 heterosexual young couples.
Procedure: Participants described their ideal partner’s and their own personality traits. Couples described themselves and each other’s traits.
Findings: Participants’ ideal partner descriptions closely matched their self-descriptions, suggesting that similarity promotes harmony in relationships.
Conclusion: Similar characteristics in partners contribute to romantic satisfaction, though not all traits need to match.
Strengths: Large sample size and real-world relevance in examining partner selection.
Limitations: Self-report data subject to bias; lacks causative conclusions.
Flashcard: Hazan & Shaver (Attachment Theory and Love)
Aim: To explore the link between early attachment styles and adult romantic relationships.
Method: Questionnaire survey (Love Quiz).
Sample: 620 self-selected participants (age 14–82, 205 males, 415 females). Follow-up study with 108 college students.
Procedure: Participants selected statements representing their adult attachment style and described their parents’ parenting style.
Findings: Securely attached individuals rated their parents as responsive. Anxious-avoidant individuals described parents as unresponsive, and anxious-ambivalent as inconsistent.
Conclusion: Early attachment patterns may influence adult relationships, though no strict determination exists.
Strengths: Large sample for reliability; pioneering in adult attachment theory.
Limitations: Sampling bias due to self-selection; limited cross-cultural generalizability.
Flashcard: Dion et al. (The Halo Effect in Attraction)
Aim: To examine the influence of physical attractiveness (halo effect) on partner selection.
Method: True experiment using photos of different attractiveness levels.
Sample: 60 university students (30 males, 30 females).
Procedure: Participants rated personality traits and future life success (e.g., happiness, career) of individuals in photos representing three attractiveness levels.
Findings: Attractive individuals were rated as happier, more successful, and possessing positive personality traits, showing the halo effect.
Conclusion: Physical attractiveness influences judgments of unrelated qualities, affecting partner perception.
Strengths: Well-controlled variables and gender balance increase reliability.
Limitations: Limited generalizability beyond American students; reliance on photos oversimplifies real partner selection.
Flashcard: Zajonc (Mere Exposure Effect)
Aim: To investigate whether repeated exposure increases attractiveness and liking.
Method: True experiment with repeated exposure to faces.
Sample: Female students from Michigan State University.
Procedure: Students viewed male faces at varying frequencies, rating likability on a scale.
Findings: Faces shown more frequently received higher likability ratings, supporting the mere exposure effect.
Conclusion: Familiarity enhances attraction, suggesting repeated exposure fosters liking.
Strengths: High control and systematic variation in exposure.
Limitations: Limited to liking rather than romantic attraction; low ecological validity.
Flashcard: Buss (Cross-Cultural Mate Preferences)
Aim: To explore gender and cultural differences in mate preferences.
Method: Cross-cultural survey (correlational).
Sample: 10,000 participants from 37 cultures.
Procedure: Participants rated and ranked mate characteristics (e.g., attractiveness, financial prospects).
Findings: Women rated financial stability higher; men preferred physical attractiveness more, reflecting evolutionary traits.
Conclusion: Mate preferences show both universal and culturally influenced patterns, supporting evolutionary explanations.
Strengths: Large, diverse sample enhances generalizability.
Limitations: Urban sample focus; potential bias in self-report data.
Theory Flashcards
Attachment Theory (Bowlby)
Key Argument: Attachment styles developed in early childhood influence adult relationships.
Types: Secure, anxious-ambivalent, anxious-avoidant.
Core Idea: Early experiences with caregivers form an "internal working model" that shapes beliefs about self and others in relationships.
Key Study: Hazan & Shaver (1987).
Similarity Attraction Model
Key Argument: Individuals are generally attracted to those with similar characteristics, promoting compatibility and satisfaction.
Benefits: Reduced conflict, better communication.
Core Study: Markey & Markey (2007).
Halo Effect
Definition: Positive impressions in one area (e.g., attractiveness) lead to positive assumptions in other areas (e.g., personality).
Application in Relationships: Attractiveness often influences perceived personality and potential.
Core Study: Dion et al. (1972).
Mere Exposure Effect
Key Argument: Familiarity increases attraction.
Explanation: Repeated exposure leads to preference through increased comfort and recognition.
Core Study: Zajonc (1968)
Flashcard: Social Exchange Theory (SET)
Theory Argument: Relationships are evaluated based on a cost-benefit analysis; if costs outweigh benefits, relationships are likely to end.
Core Idea: People seek to maximize rewards (e.g., companionship, emotional support) and minimize costs (e.g., conflict, loss of autonomy).
Related Study: Hatfield et al. (1979) explored relationship satisfaction and infidelity in connection with perceived benefits.
Strengths: Provides insight into relationship dynamics and reasons for dissolution.
Limitations: Does not account for non-rational factors, like emotional attachment, that may keep relationships intact despite high costs.
Flashcard: Equity Theory
Theory Argument: Relationships are maintained when partners perceive a balance in the rewards and costs they experience.
Core Idea: If one partner feels over- or under-benefited, dissatisfaction may lead to relationship breakdown.
Related Study: Hatfield et al. (1979) found that individuals who felt under-benefited were more likely to have extramarital affairs.
Strengths: Highlights the importance of perceived fairness in relationship satisfaction.
Limitations: Relies on subjective perception of equity, which may differ from actual contributions.
Flashcard: Fatal Attraction Theory
Theory Argument: The traits that initially attract partners may eventually lead to relationship dissolution.
Core Idea: Initially attractive traits (e.g., spontaneity) can turn into negative perceptions (e.g., unpredictability) over time.
Key Study: Felmlee (1995) conducted open interviews with 301 university students, finding that attractive traits often became reasons for breakups.
Strengths: Provides insight into how perception changes over time in relationships.
Limitations: University student sample limits generalizability, especially to long-term married couples.
Flashcard: Gottman’s Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse
Theory Argument: Negative communication styles predict relationship dissolution.
Key Communication Styles:
Contempt: Viewing oneself as superior.
Criticism: Attacking a partner’s character rather than addressing issues.
Defensiveness: Avoiding responsibility and counter-attacking.
Stonewalling: Withdrawing from communication, often due to overwhelm. Related Study: Gottman (1994) observed couples in a longitudinal study, concluding that a ratio of 5:1 positive to negative interactions predicted relationship stability.
Strengths: Longitudinal approach allows tracking of communication effects over time.
Limitations: Low ecological validity due to artificial lab settings; observed couples were already seeking counseling, which may affect generalizability.
Hatfield et al. (1979) – Equity Theory and Social Exchange Theory
Aim: To investigate the role of perceived equity (or lack thereof) in marital satisfaction and the likelihood of extramarital affairs.
Method: Correlational study using questionnaires.
Sample: 2,000 responses from married or cohabiting couples in the U.S.
Findings: Participants who felt under-benefited in their relationships reported engaging in extramarital affairs sooner than those who felt fairly treated. Both over- and under-benefited individuals had more doubts about the relationship’s future.
Conclusion: Perceptions of equity influence relationship satisfaction and stability, supporting Social Exchange and Equity Theories.
Felmlee (1995) – Fatal Attraction Theory
Aim: To explore how qualities initially attractive in a partner can later contribute to relationship dissolution.
Method: Open interviews.
Sample: 301 university students reflecting on recent breakups.
Findings: In 88% of cases, participants cited the traits that initially attracted them to their partners (e.g., spontaneity or strength) as the same traits that eventually led to dissatisfaction.
Conclusion: "Fatal attraction" occurs when positive initial traits become negative over time, contributing to relationship breakdown.
Gottman (1994) – Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse
Aim: To identify communication patterns predictive of relationship breakdown and determine what makes marriages last.
Method: Longitudinal observations and interviews, termed the “Love Lab” studies.
Sample: 200 couples observed over 20 years.
Findings: The presence of four negative communication styles (Contempt, Criticism, Defensiveness, and Stonewalling) predicted relationship dissolution. Marriages that maintained a positive-to-negative interaction ratio of 5:1 tended to be more stable.
Conclusion: Negative communication styles are detrimental to relationships, whereas positive interactions contribute to relationship longevity.