PSYC 1004: Introduction to Social Psychology

Lecture 9 Notes – Interpersonal Attraction and Close Relationships

Objectives
Factors affecting Interpersonal Attraction
 Proximity
 Similarity
 Familiarity
 Emotion
 Attractiveness

Proximity/ Propinquity and Attraction

Proximity/ Propinquity
 Physical closeness between persons
 Less physical distance  repeated exposure  positive feelings  mutual attraction
 Reason for effect:
 Repeated exposure

 The Repeated Exposure Effect by Zajonc (1968)

 More we exposed to a stimulus the more we like it
 If stimulus mildly negative, neutral, or positive
 Reason
 We at least mildly discomfited by the new

 Classic Study by Festinger, Schachter, & Back (1950)

 Experiment on friendships among couples in apartment buildings
 Couples randomly assigned to apts
 Strangers on entry
 Asked to name 3 closest friends
 65% chose friends in same building

 Moreland & Beach (1992)

 4 women attended lecture for one semester.
 Attendance times: 0, 5, 10, or 15

Similarity and Attraction

Similarity
 Similarity-Dissimilarity Effect
 Research - people are attracted to those who are similar to themselves
 Similarity needed to develop friendships/ relationships

 The Proportion of Similarity by Byrne & Nelson (1965)

 Formula to predict attraction =
No. of topics on which similar views expressed
No. of topics on which they have communicated
 Higher the proportion of similarity = greater the liking

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 The Repulsion Hypothesis by Rosenbaum (1986)
 Disagrees with proportion of similarity
 Similarity does not affect attraction
 People repulsed by dissimilarity
 Research disprove this hypo

 Similar Traits that Lead to Attraction

 Shared opinions
 Physical appearance
 Personality
 Attachment style (Klohnen & Luo, 2003)
 Interpersonal style
 Demographics
 Interests/ Activities and Experiences
 Situations you choose to be in frequented by like-minded people
 Social skills

Physical Attractiveness and Attraction

Physical Attractiveness
 Influences attraction
 Some traits are:
 Cross cultural,
 Culture specific
 Historical
 But considerable agreement re what is beautiful.

 Common traits considered attractive

 Symmetry
 Typicality
 Average or composite faces are more attractive than individual/unique faces

 Attractiveness and the human face

 Consensus across cultures about facial traits that are attractive
 Female facial features:
 Large eyes, small nose, small chin, prominent cheekbones, narrow cheeks, high eyebrows, large pupils, big smile
 Male facial features:
 Large eyes, prominent cheekbones, large chin, big smile

 Other factors that influence attractiveness

 Context
 people more attractive as evening progresses
 Observable disabilities
 Clothing
 Physique

 Physical attractiveness and gender

 Men like waist to hip ratio of 7:10
 Women find men with wealth & status more attractive

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 Men > women claim physical attractiveness is important in choosing friend, date, mate
 In actual behaviour both genders make dating choices based on attractiveness

 The Matching Hypothesis (Walster, Aronson, Abrahams, & Rottman, 1966)

 People want to date the most attractive people,
 Actual choice = similar level of attractiveness

 Physical attractiveness associated with other good qualities

 “What is beautiful is good stereotype”
 Stereotype affects peoples judgements/ attributions in specific areas:
 Sociable
 Extraverted
 Popular
 Sexual
 Happy
 Assertive

 Highly attractive people do develop good social interaction skills and report having more satisfying interactions
with others.
 The beautiful, from a young age, receive a great deal of social attention that in turn helps them develop good
social skills.
 Can a “regular” person be made to act like a “beautiful” one through the self-fulfilling prophecy?
 Yes.

Familiarity
 Familiarity
 A crucial variable that explains interpersonal attraction
 When research participants rate the attractiveness of faces, they prefer the faces that most resembled their
own!

 Familiarity also underlies:

 Propinquity
 Similarity
 Reciprocal liking

Affect/ Emotion
 Reinforcement-affect model - Byrne & Clore
 Emotion can influence liking both directly and indirectly

 Laughter and liking

 Laughter helps strengthen bonds between people.
 Sharing a humorous experience increases the likelihood of a pleasant interaction between individuals.

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CLOSE RELATIONSHIPS
Theories of Interpersonal Attraction and Close Relationships
 Need for Affiliation (McClelland, 1961)
 Motive to seek and maintain social relationships
 Consists of:
 Regular social contacts
 Form relationships easily.

 Situational factors affecting need:

 Fear inducing situations
 Crises
 Natural disasters
 Reminders of mortality

 Social Comparison Theory (Festinger)

 We seek out others
 To interpret our reactions
 To find support for actions
 Stressful situation - others help us make sense of situation

 Social Exchange Theory (Homans, 1961)

 In relationships we seek rewards
 Feelings about a relationship determined by:
 REWARDS +COSTS of relationship
 Chances of having better relationship with someone else

 Equity Theory
 Rules governing social interaction/ exchanges
 “Relative needs” rule
 To each according to his needs
 Equality rule
 Equity rule
 Rewards proportional to contributions or costs

 Balance Theory (Heider, 1965; Newcombe, 1961)

 Two people like each other + find they’re similar = state of balance
 Balance feels good
 Two people like each other + dissimilar to each other = Imbalance
 Imbalance does not feel good
 Two people dislike each other = Nonbalance

 Evolutionary Psychology
 Evolutionary approach to mate selection
 Men and women attracted to different characteristics in each other to maximize reproductive success
 Women attracted by men’s resources
 Men attracted by women’s appearance
 Top characteristics for both the same:
 honesty, trustworthiness, pleasant personality

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Family and its effects on close relationships

 Relationships with Family Members:
 Our First and Most Lasting Close Relationships
 With parents
 With other adult family members
 With siblings

 Attachment style:
 Degree of security experienced in interpersonal relationships
 Initially develops in infancy

 Parents & Attachment Style (John Bowlby, Mary Ainsworth)

 Secure attachment style
 Parents
 Sensitive, nurturing & responsive caregivers
 Result
 ↑ Self-esteem - self worthy & liked
 ↑ interpersonal trust
 Relationships - close relationships

 Insecure Attachment Styles

 Fearful avoidant attachment
 Effect on child
 ↓ Self-esteem
 ↓ Interpersonal trust - negative view of others
 Relationships – ambivalent & difficult
 Want them but distrustful of them

 Preoccupied – anxious attachment

 Parents
 Anxious
 Results
 ↓ Self-esteem - feelings of negative self-worth
 ↑ interpersonal trust
 Relationships –
 Desire for closeness and relationships
 Anxiety – fear of lack of reciprocity
 Clingy

 Dismissive-avoidant
 Parents
 Aloof, distant, rebuff attempts at closeness
 Results
 Self - apparent higher self esteem
 ↓ interpersonal trust
 Relationships

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 denial of need for them & stress personal independence
 Desire for relationships but too mistrustful – I reject u before u reject me

 Note
 Does not mean that if people had unhappy relationships with their parents, they are doomed to repeat this
same kind of unhappy relationship with everyone they ever meet.
 People can and do change
 Can have more than one attachment style as a result of their various experiences in close relationships.

 Siblings & extended family & others

 Siblings, grandparents, teachers, neighbours
 Can compensate for impairment in parent child relationship
 May not

Love and Romantic Relationships - Sternberg

 Sternberg’s (1986) Triangular model of love
 Components of every loving relationship
 Intimacy
 Passion
 Decision/ Commitment

 Consummate love
 High intimacy+ passion+ commitment
 The best

 Companionate love
 Intimacy + commitment +no passion
 Liking
 Intimacy + no passion + no commitment
 Romantic love
 High in intimacy + passion+ low in commitment
 Fatuous Love
 Passion+ commitment + no intimacy

 Infatuation
 Passion + no commitment + no intimacy

 Empty love
 Commitment + no intimacy + no passion

Required Reading
Social Psychology
Robert A. Baron * Nyla R. Branscombe
Chapter SEVEN
Interpersonal Attraction, Close Relationships, and Love