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Analyze why relationships may change or end. Brief Writing Assignment: Why do most friendships/intimate relationships end ?. Ending relationships.
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Brief Writing Assignment:Why do most friendships/intimate relationships end?
Ending relationships • Very seldom do relationships span the course of a lifetime. This means that many of our relationships will change (intimate to distant friend, best friend to associate, etc.) or end. • This objective will analyze theories that seek to explain why relationships end.
Theories on why relationships end • Social Exchange Theory (1958) • George Homans • Attribution Bias • George Homans
Social Exchange Theory • Social exchange theory make use of the concepts of rewards and costs (which were borrowed from behavioral psychology) and resources (which were borrowed from economics) when discussing the foundation of the interpersonal exchange.
Social Exchange Theory • In 1958, American sociologist George Caspar Homans laid the basis of the social exchange theory in his article, “Social Behavior as Exchange.”
Social Exchange Theory • Social exchange theory proposes that social behavior is the result of an exchange process. The purpose of this exchange is to maximize benefits and minimize costs. • According to this theory, people weigh the potential benefits and risks of social relationships. When the risks outweigh the rewards, people will terminate or abandon that relationship.
Social Exchange Theory All relationships have give and take, although the balance of this exchange is not always equal. Social Exchange theory explains how we feel about a relationship with another person as depending on our perceptions of: • The balance between what we put into the relationship and what we get out of it. • The kind of relationship we deserve. • The chances of having a better relationship with someone else.
Social Exchange Theory • Rewards and costs are important concepts that form the basis of most social exchange theories. • Rewards are exchanged resources that bring pleasure and satisfaction, while costs are exchanged resources that are perceived as a loss or punishment
What are examples of the rewards that we gain from relationships?
Social Exchange Theory • Extrinsic rewards can include the exchange of gifts during Christmas or birthdays, but nonmaterial rewards exist in the forms of teaching or self-improving. • A good example of nonmaterial rewards is in a teacher-student relationship: the student receives knowledge on how to pass exams, while the teacher gets to pass on his or her knowledge of the subject to students. • Once the student reaches his or her goal of passing the exam, the relationship between student and teacher usually changes or ends.
What are examples of the costs that we incur from relationships?
Social Exchange Theory • The costs of social exchange relationships can involve punishments experienced, the energy invested in a relationship, or rewards foregone as a result of engaging in one behavior or course of action rather than another (Blau 1964).
Thinking critically: Does satisfaction alone cause relationships to change or end? Why or why not?
Social Exchange Theory • According to exchange theorists, satisfaction with a relationship alone does not determine the likelihood that a relationship will continue. • Thibaut and Kelley (1959) developed the concept of comparison level of alternatives (CLalt), defined as the lowest level of outcome a person will accept from a relationship in light of available alternatives, to explain individuals' decisions to remain in or leave a relationship.
Social Exchange Theory • The CLalt is an individual's assessment of the outcomes available in an alternative to the present relationship. When the outcomes available in an alternative relationship exceed those available in a relationship, the likelihood increases that person will leave the relationship.
Other factors that influence relationship change Biological Explanations: • There is ample evidence that men in committed romantic relationships have lower levels of testosterone than single men. As a man’s marriage becomes less stable, his levels of testosterone rise. With changing of the relationship or divorce, his testosterone levels rise even more. Increased levels of testosterone can decrease levels of vasopressin and oxytocin – the very chemicals responsible for male-female attachment Cognitive Explanations: • Cognitive explanations represent the beliefs, values, and relationship orientations that an individual associates with various types of relationships can influence the changing or ending of the relationship (McDonald 1984).
Other factors that influence relationship change Cultural Explanations: • There is significant research that suggest culture plays a vital role in schemas for ending relationships. Collectivist studies have found long lasting relationships to be the cultural norm compared to individualist cultures.
