Relationships Flashcards
Sexual Selection
Evolutionary explanation of partner preference.
Attributes or behaviours that increase reproductive success are passed on.
Human Reproductive Behaviour
Any behaviours which relate to opportunities to reproduce and increase the survival chances of our genes.
Self-disclosure
Revealing personal information about yourself to a partner, which can strengthen a romantic bond when used appropriately.
Physical Attractiveness
How appealing we find a person’s face - there’s an assumption that we seek to form relationships with the most attractive person available.
Anisogamy
The differences between male and female sex cells.
Male Gametes
Sperm - extremely small, highly mobile, created continuously in vast numbers from puberty to old age, don’t require much energy to produce.
Female Gametes
Eggs/ ova - relatively large, static, produced at intervals for a limited number of fertile years, require huge investment of energy.
Inter-sexual selection
Refers to mate choices of males or females (quality over quantity).
Sexy Sons Hypothesis: Fisher, 1930
A female mates with a male who has a desirable characteristic, this ‘sexy’ trait is inherited by her son.
Intra-sexual selection
Refers to the competition between males to be able to mate with a female (quantity over quality).
Social Penetration Theory: Altman and Taylor, 1973
The gradual process of revealing your inner self to someone else.
Involves reciprocal exchange of information between intimate partners.
Reciprocity: Reis and Shaver, 1988
A balance of self-disclosure between both partners results in a more successful romantic relationship.
Matching Hypothesis: Waltster et al, 1966
The belief that we do not select the most attractive person as a prospective partner, but we are attracted to people who approximately ‘match’ us in physical attractiveness.
Filter Theory
A series of different factors progressively limits the range of available romantic partners to a much smaller pool of possibilities.
Social Demography
First level of filter theory.
Geographical location and social class.
Many relationships are formed between partners who share social demographic characteristics.
Similarity in attitudes
Second level of filter theory.
We find partners who share our basic beliefs and values in the earlier stages of a relationship.
Complementarity
Third level of filter theory.
Similarity becomes less important as a relationship develops.
It is replaced by a need for your partner to balance your traits with opposite ones of their own.
Social Exchange Theory (SET) - Thibault and Kelley
How relationships form and develop.
It assumes that romantic partners act out of self-interest in exchanging rewards and costs.
Rewards, costs and profits - SET
A satisfying and committed relationships when rewards exceed costs and potential alternatives are less attractive than the current relationship.
Rewards = companionship, sex, emotional support.
Comparison Level - SET (CL)
The amount of reward you believe you deserve to get.
Develops out of our experiences from previous relationships.
Comparison Level for Alternatives - SET (CLalt)
Duck (1994) - the CLalt we adopt depends on the state of the current relationship.
Being in a satisfying relationship may mean you might not notice other alternatives exist.
Stages of relationship development
Sampling stage, bargaining stage, commitment stage, institutionalisation stage.
Equity Theory: Walster et al, 1978
An economic theory of how relationships develop.
Acknowledges impact of rewards and costs on relationship satisfaction, criticises SET for ignoring equity.
Equity
Fairness.
