Key Concept | Definition | Supporting Research | Evaluation | Reinforcement + Reward/Need Satisfaction Theory Byrne and Clore (1970)Theories of Relationship Formation | * RNS Theory proposes people attracted to those they...Find rewarding to be with as they meet an unmet need e.g need for company, financial security. (Affiliation: Refers to the basic universal need for company/relationships/belonging and acceptance. ) * It is based on operant conditioning, theory suggests people....Form relationships with those whose presence is directly associated with reinforcement * Based on classical conditioning, theory suggests people...Learn to associate person (neutral stimulus) with the positive mood (unconditional stimulus) they were in when they met them. * Successful relationships develop when...The positive feelings outweigh the negative feelings. | May and Hamilton (1980)Procedure: While listening to either pleasant, unpleasant or no music, 30 female undergraduates were asked to make a series of personal judgements of attractive and unattractive males, using photographs.Results: The attractive males were evaluated more positively than the unattractive males. More positive evaluations of personal character in the pleasant music condition than in either of the other conditions. | Lacks ecological validity and mundane realism: People do not meet people under those circumstances.The RNS only explores the rewards people get from a relationship.This is a problem because Hayes 1985 found that individuals gain reward from giving as well as receiving.Gender and Culture Bias: Lott 1994 found that in many cultures women are more focused on meeting the needs of others than on reinforcement.Also explains why people would stay in abusive relationships. Perhaps the rewards are not happiness but stability and status. The relationship fulfils the need of affiliation. | Matching Hypothesis + Social DesirabilityTheories of Relationship Formation | * The more socially desirable someone is the more desirable they would expect a dating or marriage partner to be. * Social Desirability: refers to any trait or characteristic that makes a person attractive or desirable as a partner. * It is found that matched pairs are more likely to have happy enduring relationships than couples who are not matched in terms of social desirability. | Computer Dance – Walster 1966-1969)752 1st year undergrads at the University of Minnesota were invited to attend a ‘get acquainted’ dance. They believed they had been matched with their date.The success of these random matches was assessed, using a questionnaire distributed in an interval during the dance and a six month follow-up.Results: The more attractive the student the more attractive they expected their date to be. The people who found their matches attractive carried their relationships on. | Culture Bias, Ethnocentric: The values in North America may be more materialistic to cultures elsewhere. E.g Eastern Cultures.Lack of Ecological Validity: Due to the fact that it was a laboratory experiment.Murnstein 1972 - The Real World attractiveness levels of actual couples that were going out were on the same level of attractiveness. (supports matching hypothesis)Matching in terms of ‘social desirability’ has come to be associated specifically with ‘physical attractiveness’. Lacks internal Validity: The concept ‘physical attractiveness’ is poorly operationalised it is subjective. | The Filter/ Stage Model + DemographyKerchoff + Davis (1962)Theories of Relationship Formation | Relationships develop through different filters and different factors are important at different times.Potential partners are filtered so that the ‘field of availables’ is narrowed down to a relatively small field of desirables- those we consider potential partners. * Filter 1: Similarity of variables/ Demographics Proximity, Ethnicity, Religion, Social Class, Educational Background and Physical Attractiveness. * Filter