Equity theory

Gender differences

Steil and Weltman found that male and female notions of perceived equity are different. Women are more likely to see their husband's job as more important than their own and wives had a tendency to seek less for themselves meaning they require less for the relationship to be equitable than their male counterparts.

Equity

The underlying belief that people require perceived fairness in their relationship and feel distressed if they perceive unfairness.

Ratio differences

This is key to equity theory, as it suggests that a relationship doesn't have to be equal to be equitable. It is possible for each partner to receive/ give very different amounts and for the perception of equity to still be present. It is all based on whether or not the people in the relationship see themselves as giving more than they are gaining or not. An equitable relationship is one where the partner's benefits minus their costs equals their costs minus their benefits. E.g everyone beliefs the give and take is fair.

Walster

Developed equity theory as a modification to Thibaut and Kelley's social exchange theory.

Clark and Mills

Evidence to criticise- disagree that relationships can be based on economics. They distinguished between exchange (colleagues) and communal (romantic) couples. Although exchange couples may involve in keeping track of rewards and costs, communal relationships are governed more by a desire to respond to the needs of the partner. There is still some concern with equity, but partners tend to believe things balance out in the long run.

Ragsdale et al

Evidence to criticise- reject the claim that equity is a key determinant of relationship success. They argue that it is an insufficient way off explaining problems in relationships as it only paints a partial picture of the true nature of problems.

Stafford and Canary

Evidence to support equity- surveyed over 200 couples and found satisfaction was at the highest for spouses who perceived their relationships to be equitable.

DeMaris

Evidence to support- 1500 couples were surveyed to find out about inequity and problems in marriage, found if women felt they were under benefitted there was a greater risk of divorce.

Inequity

According to equity theory, any kind of inequity, (perceived unfairness) can cause distress in a relationship and lead to dissatisfaction.