Psych 137C Midterm

Why do Intimate Relationships matter?

1) They matter because they are universal and found in all cultures regardless of SES and other factors. 2) Also they are powerful, they produce the (Highest highs and Lowest lows) in a persons life. 3) Because they affect our health. BUT being in this R doesn't mean you're happy, you can be staying for kids/resources. And hook-ups don't qualify even though lust is present cuz connection isn't equal and meaningful.

What are the 5 dimensions of Interdependence?

1. Frequency of contact 2. Duration of contact 3. Diversity of different interactions 4. Direction of influence (uni or bidirectional) 5. Strength of influence

Close Relationship

A R that is strong, frequent, and diverse in interdependence that lasts over a considerable period of time. (Direction doesn't matter you can have a close R without it being mutual.) Like friends or grandmas.

Microsystem

An environment around the couple, like the park we are in. Contains friends and family influences (like Romeo and Juliet).

Theory

An interconnected set of beliefs, knowledge, and assumptions that relate to understanding a phenomenon. It is useful for mapping out stuff and can have different maps for the same concept and some maps are better than others.

Internal Working Model

An internal psych structure representing the conscious/unconscious beliefs and explanations people have about themselves.

The 2 Dimensions of Attachment

Anxious: People who are afraid of intimacy and it makes them uncomfortable and they have a neg view of themself. Avoidant: People who avoid intimacy and have a neg view of others.

Stability and change in attachment over time

Attachment is stable over time and found to determine types of R's you will engage in but there are instances where you can change attachment categories. Ex: If you find someone who is super caring and attentive they can teach you that its ok to trust and over time your self esteem and outlook on life can improve.

What is the General Disagreement about Intimate Relationships?

Attraction: Some people say play hard to get, others say just be forward and upfront, others say whatever so what is the right move. Conflict: Should couples embrace it or avoid it? Divorce: How does it affect children?

How Does the Social Learning Theory Guide Research?

By studying dyadic interactions: the interaction between 2 people how they behave/respond.

Observational Coding

Coding interactions observed in couples

Social rewards

Companionship, validation, security

Opportunity Costs

Costs associated with not pursuing other passionate resources ( ex: taking a job far away, seeing other people).

Comparison Level (CL)

Different people have different standards, their satisfaction comes from whether their standards are met. SATISFACTION = OUTCOME - CL The outcomes have to be greater than the CL or you won't be satisfied. This is hard if you have a big CL and CL is relativley stable.

Material rewards

Food, money, etc

How Does the Social Exchange Theory Guide Research?

It can help predict things like break-ups and divorce. Between 20-40% of those who file for divorce change their minds. So this theory says this is due to dependence being too high (kids, resources, etc.) So dependence can predict divorce.

What does SET leave out?

It fails to explain how stable, rewarding relationships become unstably costly ones. Also it focuses on rewards/costs of now, but not on how they might change over interactions. (Ex: my behavior to my GF affects her behavior to me and so on.)

Effects of Marriage on Well-Being of Children

It is found that parental status affects the child more than race, their self esteem and later R's can be affected and they are more likely to divorce if their parents have divorced.

Interdependence

It is mutual influence that 2 people have over each other, present in any R. This word is nesscary for intimacy, but intimacy is not needed for this word. (Ex: siblings) Also it draws feelings/ideas about the person when asked about the person and feelings must be bidirectional. Influences must be continuous

Study with Congestive Heart Failure

It was found that couples in better R's were more likely to be alive when they had congestive heart failure and a good partner/suport compared to those who were in an unsatisfying IR.

Stats on Marriage and Intimacy

It was found that higher amounts of divorce occur in the 1st few years of marriage and decrease as the marriage gets older. Also it was found that men on average have higher reports of satisfaction and intimacy as the marriage progresses though both sexes report a decrease as time progresses.

What makes a satisfying R (Satisfaction Question)?

It was found that mutual support, good communication, satisfying sex, and reciprocity makes it good.

Assumptions of Social Exchange Theory

It's believed that people evaluate and make decisions about their relationships the same way that they weigh economic decisions. OUTCOME = REWARDS - COSTS We know we are in a good R cuz we are always weighing the costs/rewards.

Secure Attatchment

Kids who are comfortable with their parents and environment, have high self esteem and view of others, and feel well looked after. They usually grow up to form good intimate R's. Responds to conflict by talking it out and such. Insecure: no friends, low self esteem and translates to poor marriages later in life. Respond to conflict negatively think the world hates them.

Sexual vs. Emotional infidelity guided by TPI (a subset of Evolutionary Theory)

Males: Emotional affairs are less than sexual affairs to them cuz they need to ensure they aren't wasting resources on offspring that isn't theirs. Females: Emotional affairs are more to them than sexual affairs cuz they are the one gestating and need a person who will support them mentally and physically.

What was found to be the main contributor/predictor of happiness?

Marriage was because it affects life happiness and is central to one's subjective well being.

Rewards in an R

Material goods, sex, comfort, stability, support, etc. Any ways R's may fulfill needs/desires.

What makes a good theory?

One that suggests a hypothesis that has been repeatedly confirmed and has good construct validity (refers to how well a test or tool measures the construct that it was designed to measure).

What are the contributions of intimate relationships to the survival of species?

Only the fittest will reproduce offspring, much like Darwin's natural selection suggests.

How do marriages last so long (Longevity Question)?

People break up even though it hurts because the R is just so bad that it may not be worth it. Slightly less than 1/2 of marriages end in divorce in the US for 1st marriages. However, it was found the longer you last in a R the less likely you will divorce because there is more at stake (kids, assets, resources, time).

Period of Evolutionary Adaptivness

Period 1000's of years ago when the human species took its current form.

What are the pros and cons of self report?

Pros: -Easy to do -Cheap -Quick -Sometimes gets at exactly what we want to know. -Good online cuz anonymous= truthful answers. Cons: -People don't always tell the truth, (like research on violent behavior). -People do not always know the truth

What are the pros and cons of systemic observation?

Pros: -Very relevant (if you choose well). -Great detail. -Ability to define things. Cons: -Very expensive! -Reactivity of patients (might react differently in front of an audience). -The meaning problem

Variables in Scientific Method

Refers to elements of the theory, because researchers theorize about aspects of the world that VARY across people and time.

Omnibus measure

Refers to satisfaction with a R and is based on opinions about the R as a whole and specific aspects of it too.

Macrosystem

Refers to the big picture environment a couple is in like the state, time period, political system we are in. Contains national and historical forces affecting the R (like the influence of modern tech vs. tech 1000 years ago). Things like the housing market can affect R's.

Escape Conditioning

Rewarding each others unpleasant behavior to escape.Like reinforcing our partners neg behavior by not taking the trash out till you scream at me. Behavior in SLT moves to cognition, meaning we look at cognition rather that behavior influencing R. This is because it is thought that behavior isn't always perceived the same way cuz it isn't concrete.

Costs in R

Sacrifices, arguments, lost time, restrictions, lost opportunities, etc. Any consequence of being in a R that prevent fulfilling needs.

Attachment Behavior System according to Bowlby.

Says we evolved this system of bonding, reactions, and behaviors that help ensure the kid's survival, so that our offspring can thrive and grow. (EX: babies evolved cuteness so we don't abandon them and they evolved crying so that we don't forget about them.

Passionate Love

Strong lustful longing infatuation that has an intense preoccupation for the person. There are feelings of exhilaration when reunited with the person. Love doesn't = intimacy.

Mesosystem

The bigger part of our environment like the city or religion we are in. Contains neighbors, social systems, and culture (like people in high NY vs. people in ghetto LA).

Psychological Mechanism Problem

The downside to this is that it's really broad and hard to tell if the preference is a learned cultural thing or an actual mechanism passed down through genes.

Protection Effects

The experience of being in a R produces protection advantages. (Ex: more money, resources, social support, aid, etc.) It is shown people who marry increase their wealth compared to cohabitators.

Natural Selection -> Sexual Selection

The idea that a certain trait will be passed down, even if it impedes survival, cuz it helps in successful reproduction. Ex: Peacocks don't need their plumage to survive it slows them down, but it helps then get mates. Thus, humans aren't different they pass down traits that contribute to successful mating.

Skinner (Radical Behaviorism)

The idea that behaviors are shaped by their consequences; pos consequences make behaviors more likely and neg consequences make them less likely. About how rewards and current R's affect you.

The Double-ABCX Model

The same as its predecessor only it says that for every element of the initial model theres an initial meaning and a meaning that emerges over time. (Stress pileup). For every stress (A) there is a double stress that can lead to more stress. Ex: My car breaks down and I can't go to work then I can't get paid for that week or pay my bills). There is double B There is double C= the interpretation of how we cope. Double X= Crisis

Theory in Scientific Method

The starting point directing researchers toward considering aspects of the world that might help them answer the general question the theory is trying to explain.

Theory of Parental Investment

The theory that each gender has different preferences based on their needs. Men and women make very different investments in terms of offspring.

Social Learning Theory

The theory that our behavior is molded and shaped within relationships. Rewarding and punishing interactions may affect subsequent behaviors and judgments of satisfaction with a relationship. The learning component of this theory is that when a couple experiences a rewarding experience they learn that they can trust their partner furthering the chances of rewards occurring.

Social Exchange Theory

The theory that partners evaluate the rewards and costs associated with being in a relationship, along with barriers to leaving the relationship and their available alternatives

Attachment Theory

The theory that the nature of the bonds that we form with our primary caregivers in infancy shapes the relationships that we have throughout our lives.

Psychological Constructs

These are abstract ideas (e.g., love, commitment, satisfaction) that social psychologists strive to operationalize (the process of translating an abstract idea into concrete terms so it can be studied) and measure so that they can study R's better.

Fixed Response Scale

These are specific questions or scale questions that participants are asked to complete. The questions and answers are usually determined by the researchers.

Lifespan Studies

These are the best ways to asses intimate R's and the effect the environment has on R's using the SEM. It was found that R's that would normally endure are affected by stressful times (Ex: war).

Physiological Responses

These are used more in studying R's and they are the body's involuntary reactions to experiences.

Fearful Attachment

These people have a neg view of selves/others and high anxiety. They feel unworthy of intimacy, care, and consideration. They seek validation and think people are unlikely to provide affirmation they need. They expect others to be sources of pain and avoid intimacy.

Preoccupied Attachment

These people have a pos view of others and low attachment avoidance. They have closeness about self worth and high anxiety. They seem needy and dependent in others for affirmation and rejection is especially painful for them.

Dismissing Attatchment

These people have a pos view of themselves, low attachment anxiety, and view themselves worthy of love, but view others as unlikely to be caring/available. They have a neg view of others, value independence, don't dwell on rejection, avoids closeness (minimizes its importance), and dismisses own need for intimacy.

Open-ended Questions

These questions are usually used in research that is new or that researchers don't know much about cuz it helps gather details that can be used to make more specific hypothesis.

What are the strategies of Relationship Science?

They use: Self Reports: which measure perception/experience operationalized by the experimenter and from the POV of the participant. (EX: amount of sex, hugging, kissing = love). Systematic Observation: where verbal communication, non-verbal communication, written communication, and biological responses are observed.

Pairbonds

This can mean marriage or legally sanctioned cohabitations like living together. It is motivated by love or mutual attraction.

The Strange Situation Experiment

This experiment was done to asses what type of attachment a child has by interacting then leaving them in a room.

The Scientific Method

This is a great way to study intimate R's cuz it leaves room for skepticism and change as our truths shift over time. Also it leads to observations and testing which is needed in order to say something is true. (ex: divorce increases the risk of the kids getting divorced themselves later on the next step would be to find out why this occurs and appoint treatment like more emphasis on school or something).

Evolutionary Perspective on Intimacy

This perspective believes that to understand where intimacy stems from we have to study the origins of humanity just as we do with animals of other species.

Adult Attachment Questionaire

This questionnaire was created to see if adults form attachments and their R's later in life based on their attachments from their parents. And if they fall into the same categories as when they were infants. To truly see results had to do a longitudinal study with infants, determine their attachments, then follow them and observe them when they reach adulthood and form their intimate R's.

Sociosexuality

This refers to people varying in their willingness to contemplate sex outside the context of a committed R.

Study of Electric Shock

This study found that when a person was shocked their brain activity and pain was high and this did not change when holding a researchers hand who they did not know. However, when they held their partner's hand their scared brain activity significantly lessened.

Stinky T-shirt Studies

This study is an example of evolutionary theory cuz suggests women can sense good mates. Study says if women are more liable for baby making they must be careful in mate picking and tested this on a college. Got a group of guys and made sure to get good looking dudes with symmetrical faces and asked them to sleep in a shirt for days and hand it over. Women then made to smell all the shirts and pick the best smelling one. It was found that women who were ovulating were able to pick the fittest guys, implying the hypothesis was right.

Behavioral Marital Therapy

This taught people to know how to censor their words into nicer ways like instead of saying you are a jerk you can say it makes me sad the way you speak to me. Using more I comments rather than accusing comments.

Evaluating Social Learning Theory

This theory can explain how satisfied relationships change and what you can do to keep the R strong. This theory doesn't care about how some people are better at being nice to others, it really focuses only on the spreading of effects. It leaves out where negative behavior comes from and whether people who are distressed can ever get happy. Basically it ID's the problem but provides no help with how to fix it.

Evaluating Attachment Theory

This theory is popular cuz it can explain why some people expect different things from R's and different levels of attachments people show. It can also explain why some people fall in the same traps of R's like pushing people away or falling for ********. Acknowledges that people can change and that the theory isn't end all. Limitation: Most people are secure so what explains why so many people still break up/divorce, what's missing.

Evolutionary Theory

This theory says humans seek particular mates to solve specific adaptive problems that their ancestors confronted during the course of human evolution. Human mate preferences/decisions are hypothesized to be strategic products of selection pressures operating during ancestral conditions.

Coercion Theory

This theory says reinforcing behaviors cause neg reactions like learning that nagging will get things done so partner learns to always be negative from the very beginning.

Social Ecological Models

This theory suggests stresses, supports, and constraints in the environment of a couple may affect the way partners think, feel, and act in their relationships. And that these things constantly change and may affect the R even more.

Attachment as a necessary for survival of the species.

Through attachment theory it is argued we need a secure base to take care of us thats why we evolved motherly care-taking and shit.

Assumptions of Social Learning Theory

Through this theory it is beleived that anything that affects a relationship is only due to its impact on the way you treat me. Behavior is the final common pathway, so stress doesn't affect me, but it affects how you treat me. I can tell if I'm in a good R by an accumulation of appraisals I do after each interaction with you. Each good encounter is gunna make me more likely to treat you good. But sometimes we reinforce our partners neg behavior, like not taking the trash out till you scream at me.

When do relationships stay intact?

To know this we need to know more about whether or not you're satisfied because some satisfied people leave R's and some unsatisfied people stay in them.

Psychological Mechanisms

We evolved these human characteristic preferences and ways of thinking/reacting/strategies that promote good mating. The past is important in this idea not the present. Some are outdated though like pref for sweet taste cuz used to = good food and bitter= bad but then we created high fructose corn syrup. Ex: preference for clear skin cuz =health, or tallness in men cuz = can protect wife, pref for virgins.

Romantic Love

We have an innate need for this and it's universal, but how we participate in it varies across cultures. (EX: how the US views love (positively) vs. how China views love (negatively) may be due to our emphasis in goals where china has less gender equality and stuff).

How do we study Intimate Relationships and why?

We study them through self report surveys and observations because they are very important in our lives.

Shift in Westernized Love/Marriage

Westernized marriage is shifting to more emphasis on emotions rather than religion. Also cohabitation is increasing and marriage is becoming more freeing for women, but in turn marriage is also becoming more fragile because divorce is much easier now. Also kids before marriage is increasing cuz marriage is no longer seen as pre-req.

What makes a R hard (Change Question)?

What makes them hard is the amount of change that occurs. As time progresses circumstances and behaviors change, things change (goals, jobs, kids, resources, etc.).

Dependency

When a person is dependent on R, so much that they won't leave the R, even if it's bad. This is based on the CLalt (comparison level of alternate options). DEPENDENCY = OUTCOME - CLalt (Celeb CLalt is probably super high, cuz basically everyone wants them).

Selection Effect

When groups of people differ (married vs. non-married). Not because something is special about the group, but because of the type of people that choose to enter the group.

Felt Security

When kids feels comfortable and safe with caregiver and are able to explore the environment, leads to secure attachment if done right.

Relationship Science

When looking how to approach R's and conflict one should consult this because it takes into account all the possible variables using methods and constructs. It is essentially the tools for answering questions like navigating long distance R's and what is good/bad for R's.

Negative Reciprosity

When my statement leads to you being mad making me mad and continuing the cycle.

Social desirability effect

When participants lie cuz they think the researcher may judge their answers

Compassionate Love

When passionate love diminishes it is replaced by this. It is a warm attachment/ enduring bond where a sense of mutual commitment is present. And one tends to feel proud of the others accomplishments.

Mate Preferences based on Theory of Parental Investment

Women: Have to gestate 10 mths so must pick best mate who will protect them and have good resources cuz are vulnerable for a while. So tall, older men preffed. Men: Only give sperm and can make many babies so the must find fertile women which is why they like loyal young women cuz they know it will be their healthy baby. Their only challenge is access to women. In egalitarian societies age differences are smaller than say Saudi Arabia cuz there women have less power/resources.

Subjective Probability

Your own guess about the likelihood of the occurrence that the R will happen, it's used in SET to decide whether or not you want to pursue a R.

Advantages of Evolutionary Theory

-Links a wide range of variables to reasons supporting why we are adaptive just like other species. - Doesn't say we evolved a specific preference for genetic features for successful reproduction, so not limiting (gays and stuff). We're not attracted to fertility or resources just explains why we developed preferences. -Focuses more on gender differences and mate selection, than on how R's change due to variability and time.

What are the 7 Essential Attributes of Love?

1) Desire: wanting to unite w/ partner 2) Idealization: believing partner is unique 3) Joy: Experiencing strong pos emotions 4) Preoccupation: thinking about your partner and having little control about thoughts 5) Proximity: maintaining/restoring physical closeness/ emotional contact 6)Prioritizing: giving the R more importance/focus than other responsibilities 7) Caring: experiencing/ expressing empathy/compassion for partner

The main 5 theories highlight what 3 broad themes?

1) Dyadic Relationships: if the interaction between 2 people is the center of the R than any general understanding of intimate R's must take the way partners behave/respond into account. 2) Individual Differences: partners don't enter R's as a blank slate they bring the sum of their experiences in form of personality, values, history, ethnicity, culture, SES, and so on. 3) External Circumstances: R's are affected by what goes on in them and the external circumstances (social, physical, cultural, and historical forces).

Talk Table Studies

A couple is put facing each other then given a series of prompts to ask and answer. Each person has to rate the intended response to be pos or neg on a 0-10 scale. And the other person rates the impact of the statement as pos or neg. It was found happy couples intentions meet their impact more than unhappy couples. This tells us that the good couples do better cuz of good communication.

Interdependence Theory

A different version of SET, this theory studies the effects of interdependence and the rules that predict how individual partners behave toward each other and how partners will evaluate the outcomes of their actions.

Falsifiable

A good aspect of a theory of which is able to suggest testable predictions, that can be confirmed/denied through systematic observation.

Intimate Relationship

A relationship where partners recognize: 1)their partner is special/unique 2)sexual desire (lust) is present 3)partners influence each other across diverse domains 4)partners are interdependent There can be lust without a R, but not the other way around.

Social Control Theory

According to this view social relationships organize and regulate how people behave. (Fewer/weaker relationships = increase in deviant behaviors).

The ABCX Model applied to the Crisis Theory

Addresses why some factors that ruin R's make others stronger. A=stressor (ex; having a baby) B=resources to respond to crisis (wealth, support) C=your understanding of the stress (some see stress as an opportunity to better oneself, others see it as a threat). X= crisis (can bring people together or tear them apart depending on the tools you have).