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Interpersonal Attraction

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Propinquity. Physical attractiveness; IQ; personality. Attitude similarity ... Propinquity. The Westgate Housing Project (Festinger, Schacter & Back ) ... – PowerPoint PPT presentation

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Title: Interpersonal Attraction


1
Interpersonal Attraction
  • Milburn
  • Psychology 230

2
Real Real Gone
I got hit by a bow and arrow Got me down to the
very marrow And Im real real gone Some people
say You can make it on your own Oh you can make
it if you try I know better now You cant stand
up alone --Van Morrison
3
Factors Influencing Interpersonal Attraction
  • Attraction in the short term
  • Propinquity
  • Physical attractiveness IQ personality
  • Attitude similarity
  • Long-term relationships
  • Couples research (Rubin)
  • Family systems
  • The effects of co-habitation
  • Neurotransmitters endorphins, oxytocin

4
Factors Influencing Interpersonal Attraction
  • Attraction in the short term
  • Propinquity
  • Physical attractiveness IQ personality
  • Attitude similarity
  • Long-term relationships
  • Couples research (Rubin)
  • Family systems
  • The effects of co-habitation
  • Neurotransmitters endorphins, oxytocin

5
Factors Influencing Interpersonal Attraction
  • Attraction in the short term
  • Propinquity
  • Physical attractiveness IQ personality
  • Attitude similarity
  • Long-term relationships
  • Couples research (Rubin)
  • Family systems
  • The effects of co-habitation
  • Neurotransmitters endorphins, oxytocin

6
Propinquity
  • The Westgate Housing Project (Festinger, Schacter
    Back )
  • Expectation of close interaction (Darley
    Berschied)

7
Westgate Housing Project
Street
8
Westgate Housing Project
Street
9
Westgate Housing Project
Street
10
Westgate Housing Project
Less than 1/2 as many friends
Street
11
Propinquity
  • The Westgate Housing Project (Festinger, Schacter
    Back )
  • Expectation of close interaction (Darley
    Berschied)
  • Subjects given two folders with ambiguous
    personality information (A and B)
  • Told they would meet one woman, not the other
  • Woman that they expected to meet higher
    anticipated liking

12
Factors Influencing Interpersonal Attraction
  • Attraction in the short term
  • Propinquity
  • Physical attractiveness IQ personality
  • Attitude similarity
  • Long-term relationships
  • Couples research (Rubin)
  • Family systems
  • The effects of co-habitation
  • Neurotransmitters endorphins, oxytocin

13
Walster et al. Computer Dating Study
  • Freshman Welcome Week dance
  • I.V.s
  • Attractiveness rated
  • Personality tests (social skills
    introversion-extroversion masculinity-femininity
    MMPI
  • IQ
  • Subjects matched for date (randomly)
  • D.V.s
  • Rated date at intermission
  • Contacted several months later about further dates

14
Computer Dating Study
  • Physical attractiveness the most important factor
  • Intelligence and personality were not related to
    future dating

15
Stereotypes of Physical Attractiveness
  • Stereotypes of young children (Dion Bersheid)
  • Self-fulfilling nature of attractiveness
    stereotypes (Snyder et al.)

16
Stereotypes of Physical Attractiveness
  • Stereotypes of young children (Dion Bersheid)
  • Self-fulfilling nature of attractiveness
    stereotypes (Snyder et al.)

17
Stereotypes of Physical Attractiveness
  • Stereotypes of young children (Dion Bersheid)
  • Self-fulfilling nature of attractiveness
    stereotypes (Snyder et al.)

18
Snyder et al.
  • Males (subjects) thought experiment was about
    communication--had picture taken
  • Told would have conversation w/female student
    given folder with a womans picture
  • I.V. either attractive or unattractive woman
    (but not woman male subject was to talk with)
  • Talked on phone to a female subject call
    recorded
  • D.V.s
  • Before call male rated expected friendliness
  • After call male rated perceived friendliness
  • Conversation rated for actual friendliness

19
Snyder et al. Results
  • Males expectations reflected stereotypes
  • if thought they were going to talk to an
    attractive woman--expected her to be friendlier
    and perceived that she was friendlier than males
    who thought they were talking to unattractive
    woman
  • Males expectations were also a self-fulfilling
    prophecy
  • Independent judges rated woman (thought to have
    been attractive) to have been friendlier

20
Factors Influencing Interpersonal Attraction
  • Attraction in the short term
  • Propinquity
  • Physical attractiveness IQ personality
  • Attitude similarity
  • Long-term relationships
  • Couples research (Rubin)
  • Family systems
  • The effects of co-habitation
  • Neurotransmitters endorphins, oxytocin

21
Attitude Similarity and Liking
  • Attitude similarity correlates with liking
  • Liking causes perception of similarity (Byrne and
    Blaylock)--married couples
  • Perceived similarity causes liking
    (Newcomb)--University of Michigan transfer
    students

22
Factors Influencing Interpersonal Attraction
  • Attraction in the short term
  • Propinquity
  • Physical attractiveness IQ personality
  • Attitude similarity
  • Long-term relationships
  • Couples research (Rubin)
  • Family systems
  • The effects of co-habitation
  • Neurotransmitters endorphins, oxytocin

23
Factors Influencing Interpersonal Attraction
  • Attraction in the short term
  • Propinquity
  • Physical attractiveness IQ personality
  • Attitude similarity
  • Long-term relationships
  • Couples research (Rubin)
  • Family systems
  • The effects of co-habitation
  • Neurotransmitters endorphins, oxytocin

24
Dating Couples (Rubin)
  • Two-year study of dating couples in Boston
  • 231 couples 95 students 97 white, 44
    Catholic, 26 Protestant, 25 Jewish 25 lived
    at home, 35 in apartments, 38 in dorms
  • Asked have had sexual intercourse? 80
  • Living together? 20

25
Dating Couples (Rubin)
  • What percent had broken up?
  • 45
  • What was the effect of having had sex or living
    together?
  • UNRELATED

26
Similarily
  • Together
  • SAT .31
  • Phy Attr .32
  • Attitudes .50
  • Breakup
  • SAT .17
  • Phy Attr .16
  • Attitudes .41

27
Factors Influencing Interpersonal Attraction
  • Attraction in the short term
  • Propinquity
  • Physical attractiveness IQ personality
  • Attitude similarity
  • Long-term relationships
  • Couples research (Rubin)
  • The effects of co-habitation
  • Family systems
  • Neurotransmitters endorphins, oxytocin

28
Bumpass, Sweet, and Cherlin (1991)
  • Increase in living together prior to marriage
  • 1970--11
  • 1985--49 (recent first marriages)
  • 40 of cohabitation couples break up without
    getting married
  • After 1 1/2 years, half of cohabitating couples
    are either broken up or married
  • Bumpass Sweet (1989)--50 higher disruption
    rate of marriages that are preceded by living
    together

29
Causal Interpretations of a Correlation
  • Cohabitation and divorce are correlated
  • If two variables, A and B are correlated
  • There are three explanations
  • A causes B
  • B causes A
  • Third variable (C) or spurious correlation
    explanation C causes both A and B

30
Explanations for Correlation of Cohabitation and
Divorce
  • Can divorce cause cohabitation? B causes A
  • (1) Cohabiting causes higher divorce rate (e.g.,
    Habits of relating to each other (that seem
    appropriate to the unmarried) persist into
    marriage. (p. 922) A causes B
  • (2) People in cohabiting unions are less well
    adjusted C causes A and B
  • (3) People willing to cohabit are less
    traditional in their values, more willing to
    accept divorce as a solution to unhappiness C
    causes A and B

31
Bumpass, Martin Sweet (1991)
  • National Survey of Families and Households
  • Primary predictors of marital disruption
  • Early age at marriage
  • Low education
  • Enrolled in school or worked during first year of
    marriage
  • Cohabitated with spouse or others prior to
    marriage

32
Their Explanation for Cohabitation Effect
  • the most compelling explanation seems to be one
    of selection (Booth Johnson, 1988). That is,
    it seems far more likely that cohabitation
    signals preexisting differences in values and
    relational styles than that the experience of
    cohabitation itself reduces the likelihood of
    marital stability. ( Bumpass, Martin Sweet,
    1991, p. 32)

33
Cunningham Antill (1994)
  • Couples recruited through newspaper ads
  • Comparing married couples who had M(C) and had
    not M(NC) lived together prior to marriage
  • On a variety of variables measuring autonomy and
    attachment, M(C) wives were significantly higher
    in autonomy needs and significantly lower in
    attachment needs than the M(NC) wives

34
Brown Booth (1996)
  • NSFH survey
  • Relationship quality of cohabitating couples is
    no different than that of married couples
  • Cohabitors without plans to marry are more likely
    to have difficulty sustaining intimate
    relationships

35
Factors Influencing Interpersonal Attraction
  • Attraction in the short term
  • Propinquity
  • Physical attractiveness IQ personality
  • Attitude similarity
  • Long-term relationships
  • Couples research (Rubin)
  • The effects of co-habitation
  • Family systems
  • Neurotransmitters endorphins, oxytocin

36
Importance of family experience on relationships
  • Hazen Shaver
  • Attachment Theory (Bowlby)
  • Secure Anxious Avoidant
  • The attachment style developed in childhood is
    significantly related to the type of romantic
    relationships one has an adult.

37
Hazen Shaver
  • Respondents described their most important
    romantic relationship and parenting from mother
  • Secure average relationship length 10 years
  • Avoidant/ambivalent relationship length 6
    years
  • Anxious relationships characterized by
    preoccupation and extreme sexual attraction
    relationship length 4 years

38
Factors Influencing Interpersonal Attraction
  • Attraction in the short term
  • Propinquity
  • Physical attractiveness IQ personality
  • Attitude similarity
  • Long-term relationships
  • Couples research (Rubin)
  • Family systems
  • The effects of co-habitation
  • Neurotransmitters endorphins, oxytocin

39
Neuropsychology of Sex and Attraction
  • Love is universal (anthropologist
    Jankowiak)--evolutionary contribution
  • PEA (phenylethylamine)--falling in love
  • low PEA levels might lead to seeking
    relationships to increase PEA levels (Liebowitz,
    1983)
  • Oxytocin (hormone)--bonding
  • levels increase following sexual arousal and
    orgasm nursing mothers as well
  • Endorphins (endogenous opiates)

40
Conclusion
  • Attraction a combination of
  • Evolutionary development
  • Brain chemicals
  • Childhood experiences
  • Situational factors
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