Breakdown: Fatal Attraction Flashcards
What is fatal attraction?
A relationship begins with an attraction to a partner quality and ends with disillusionment with that quality
What are the 3 explanations for fatal attraction?
opposing forces, idealisation and corresponding weaknesses
What are opposing forces? How does this lead to breakdown?
People want qualities similar/complementary to their character, being more similar/complementary can lead to being less of the other, later discover that person lacks other qualities
What is idealisation? How does this lead to breakdown?
People want to believe that they are in a good relationship and made a good choice, explain away partners faults, can only do for so long, has to admit
What are corresponding responses? How do these to breakdown?
Person’s greatest strength is also weakness, most attractive thing stands out but unappealing flipside: adventurous = unstable, hot = vain, laid back = lazy
What research supports the idea that corresponding responses leads to breakdown?
Felmlee 1995: open interviews, 27% students showed pattern of initial attraction to trait which later caused breakdown, most common: fun = foolish, strong = domineering, spontaneous = unpredictable
What research supports the Felmlee 1995 finding?
Felmlee 2006: replication, 67% evidence of fatal attraction
What was the study that Felmlee conducted on participants that were older than the 1995 participants?
2004: 200, mean age 36.5, recruited at swimming club, open/closed questions, Big 5 to measure personality variables. Initial attraction to trait positively related to evaluation of that trait being over expressed. Extraversion 27%, attractive 21.6%
What conclusions can be drawn about the fatal attraction hypothesis and the research into this area?
well supported by Felmlee’s own research but not many replications of her study by others, identifies key factor in breakdown but doesn’t account for all
What other support is there for the fatal attraction theory?
Pines 1999: relationship therapy, found what they complained about most was what had attracted them
