companionate love: the deep affectionate attachment we feel for those with whom our lives are intertwined…
Matching – we tent to pair with someone who shares our level of physical attractiveness…
Despite the label of "just friends" that they put on their relationship, there are many factors present that point to them eventually having a romantic relationship. In lecture on September 11, 2006, we discussed factors that affect attraction. Harry and Sally display many of the factors: they are both physically…
Yoshida (1972) pointed out that this represents only a very narrow view of factors important in relationship formation as similarity of self-concept, economic level and physical condition being equally important. This research is backed up by Speakman et al (2007) who found that people often choose partners with similar levels of body fat. This shows that similar personality and…
One theory put forward for the formation of romantic relationships was by Murstein – called the Matching Hypothesis. Murstein argued that we all desire the best looking person; however we accept that this may not happen, so we go for people with a similar attractiveness to ourselves. It makes us far less likely to suffer rejection. So, in theory, Murstein’s argument is fundamentally based on physical attractiveness and does not take into account personality. Murstein says that self esteem can also affect this process. If someone suffers from a low self esteem, they are more likely to go for someone who is not as good looking as them to try and boost their esteem. This also works in reverse, if someone has a high self esteem they will go for someone who they believe is ‘out of their league’ as they feel they have the confidence to make them their partner. Murstein also carried out research to support his theory. He studied 99 couples who were dating and compared them with randomly paired couples. He found that the real couples were consistently rated as more alike in levels of attractiveness.…
One theory of the formation of a romantic relationship is one put forward by Byrne and Clore called the reward/need satisfaction model. They suggested that we have relationships long term because we find them rewarding, or we don’t like the prospect of being alone. The rewards from a partner can include friendship, love and sex, or the particular person is associated with pleasant situations so then we want to spend time with them and form a romantic relationship. This can also include the satisfaction from a relationship with a person of high social status, as it would make you look good to other people. These needs can differ from person to person as to what is important. Rusbolt and Van Lange argue that rewards are important as when you do not know someone well communication can start on a ‘tit-for-tat’ basis with favours that can lead to more conversation and rewards. This was called by Clark and Mills and ‘exchange relationship’ as a relationship like this goes on it can turn to a ‘Communal relationship’ where rewards are given as a result of concern for a partner which can be an important aspect of forming a close relationship. May and Hamilton tested the good association part of the theory by getting groups of female students to look at pictures of male students and say if they like the look of them or not. One group looked at the pictures while pleasant music was being played, another group looked while unpleasant music was being played and a control group looked with no music. As predicted the group with pleasant music rated the male students the highest.…
we have a deep, natural need to connect with other people and to belong to a social group. This sense of connection and belonging comes from good relationships with the people around us - in our families, at work or school and with our friends. There is strong evidence that when we feel we belong, we will flourish. This section explains what makes a good relationship. It gives…
Several studies in the 1960s presented the zeitgeist of social psychology research into attraction. Walster et al. (1966) did a study testing the matching hypothesis (where you’re most likely attracted to someone who is on a similar level of attractiveness to one’s self) where he advertised a ‘computer dance’ for students during fresher’s week at college. The first 376 males and 376 female volunteers were allowed in at £1.00 each. When the students arrived to sign up for the dance, four independent judges assessed each student’s…
Familiarity- we like mirrored images, and the more we are familiar with a person the more we like them…
Their theory suggests that we are attracted to people we find satisfying to be with. This can be demonstrated by asking people why they are attracted to their partner, the usual answers are: caring, supportive, affectionate or just good fun.…
What makes us attracted to certain people more than others? The science of Psychology explains how people become attracted to one another. Also, society and the media influence us into thinking what traits are attractive. Some reasons for attraction have to do with familiarity and proximity. Biology also plays a role in determining what traits we will possess. Biology and Psychology work hand and hand to help us pick our mates. The guy Sarah met at the party, Jack, found he had a lot in common with Sarah. In the reward theory of attraction, we tend to respond more positively to relationships that have more rewards than costs. The theory that states that people like those whose behavior is rewarding to them or whom they associate with rewarding events. Some factors that have been found to be similar among people attracted to one another are age, education, religion, political affiliation, and socioeconomic background. These factors do not have to be shared to form a successful relationship, but they do tend to affect attraction. Despite the belief that opposites attract, people are more likely to be attracted to each other if they are of similar age, education,…
The influence of physical attractiveness goes well beyond how drawn you may be to someone.…
From the beginning on time, being around others makes us feel affiliated. It is human nature to form relationships with people who attract us. As human beings, there has always been a desire to form relationships. The lack of relationships and bonds with other individuals can lead to negative feelings, such as loneliness. In order to figure out the need to form bonds we must analyze the benefits and factors of attraction and relationships.…
Murstein, B. I.; Cerreto, M. G.; MacDonald, Marcia G. Mac (1977). "A theory and investigation of the effect of exchange-orientation on marriage and friendship".…
Attractiveness: we tend to develop relationships with people who are approximately as attractive as we are (tendency is called the matching hypothesis)…