LECTURE 12 Interpersonal Attraction and Course Wrapup

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LECTURE 12 Interpersonal Attraction and Course
Wrap-up

• Administration
• Guest Researchers
• Interpersonal Attraction
• Break
• Social Psychological Research at York?
• Volunteering in a Lab
• Honours Theses
• Graduate School
• Final Exam
• Course Evaluations

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Questions?
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Need to Belong

• Need to Belong
• A motivation to bond with others in
  relationships that provide ongoing, positive
  interactions.
• (Meyers Spencer)
• We are social animals. Human beings are driven
  by a desire to form and maintain relationships.
• People seek relationships with others to fill a
  fundamental need to belong.
• Not meeting this need to belong influences us in
  many important ways.

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Need to Belong

• Cyberball task (Williams et al. 2001)

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Need to Belong

• Twenge et al. (2001) exclusion task
• YOUR PERSONALITY PROFILE (Alone Feedback)
• Based on past personality research, your overall
  score and the specific pattern of your responses
  indicate that you are the type of person who will
  end up alone later in life. You may have friends
  and relationships now, but by your late-20s to
  early-30s, most of these will have drifted away.
  You may even marry or have several marriages, but
  these are likely to be short-lived and will not
  continue into your 30s or 40s. Relationships tend
  not to last for people with your personality
  profile, and when you are past the age where
  people are constantly forming new relationships
  (such as in university), it is likely that you
  will end up being increasingly alone.

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Need to Belong

• Twenge et al. (2001) exclusion task
• YOUR PERSONALITY PROFILE (Belong Feedback)
• Based on past personality research, your overall
  score and the specific pattern of your responses
  indicate that you are the type of person who will
  have rewarding relationships throughout life.
  Your personality type allows you to have close
  and satisfying connections with other people.
  Therefore, you are likely to have a long and
  stable marriage and friendships that will last
  into your later years. The odds are that you will
  always have friends and people who care about you.

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Need to Belong

• Twenge et al. (2001) exclusion task
• YOUR PERSONALITY PROFILE (Misfortune Feedback)
• Your overall score and the specific pattern of
  your responses indicate that you have scored high
  on a subscale of this questionnaire that past
  personality research has correlated with accident
  proneness later in life. This suggests that you
  have a personality type that will likely cause
  you to sustain several accidents later in your
  life. You may break an arm or a leg a few times
  or you may be injured in car accidents. Even if
  you were not accident-prone earlier in life, the
  probability of these occurrences will increase
  greatly later in life, and the odds are that you
  will be involved in many accidents.

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Need to Belong

• When our need to belong is not met (e.g., when we
  are ostracized or excluded from bonding with
  others), research has shown that
• our mood becomes depressed
• we feel anxious
• we feel emotional pain (similar to physical pain
  in fMRI data)
• we can become aggressive
• we can underperform
• we may even engage in self-defeating behaviour
• conform more (e.g., Asch line task estimation
  task)

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Personal Relationships

• Intergroup Processes
• Processes that occur between 2 or more groups.
  How other groups influence your group and how
  your group influences other groups (e.g.,
  prejudice, stereotyping).
• Intragroup Processes
• Processes that occur within a group. How others
  in your own group influence you and how you
  influence your group (e.g., groupthink,
  deindividuation).
• Interpersonal Processes/Relationships
• Processes that occur between two people. How
  another person can influence you and how you
  influence that person (e.g., attraction, personal
  relationships).

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Personal Relationships

• Opinion poll (something to think about)
• Please record your answer to the following
  question.
• If a man (woman) had all the other qualities you
  desired, would you marry this person if you were
  not in love with him (her)?
• ____ Yes ____ No ____ Undecided

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What Determines Attraction?

• Proximity
• Physical Attractiveness
• Similarity
• Reciprocity

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1. Proximity

• Functional distance between two people. Not
  geographical distance so much as how often
  peoples paths cross.

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Proximity Impact(Festinger, Schachter, Back,
1950)

• 270 MIT students randomly assigned to apartments
  in 17-building complex
• Asked to name 3 closest friends within the
  complex
• 65 of friends mentioned were from same building
• Out of students living on the same floor
• of doors away said they were a close friend
• 1 41
• 2 22
• 3 16
• 4 10

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Why does proximity influence attraction?

• Availability
• Anticipation of interaction - functional
• Familiarity (mere exposure)

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Mere Exposure Study (Moreland Beach, 1992)

• 4 female confederates posed as students in large
  psych class (N 191)
• On specific days, entered classroom a few
  minutes before class, walked to front row, sat
  where everyone could see them.
• Listened, took notes, at end, walked back out
  without speaking to anyone.
• Each women attended a different amount of
  lectures - 5, 10, 15 or 0 lectures. Only one of
  these women in any given lecture.
• End of term, shown photos of each women. Ask
  students to rate how likeable she was.

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Mere Exposure Study (Moreland Beach, 1992)

• More saw a woman, the more they liked her
• Even when not aware they had seen her before
  (i.e., only about 10 recognized the woman).

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2. Physical Attractiveness

• Who is physically attractive?
• Women baby-face, non-dominant features
• Men maturity and dominance

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2. Physical Attractiveness

• Do not deviate too much from average (symmetry)
• Rationale Average features are less likely to
  carry harmful genetic mutations
• Average faces are perceived to be more familiar

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2. Physical Attractiveness

• Evolutionary Psychologist
• Childbearing and childrearing long and involved
  for women look for cues that a man can protect
  and provide look for wealth and power
• Passing along genes doesnt need to take long for
  men look for cues that women are fertile look
  for beauty and youth

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2. Physical Attractiveness
Good financial prospect
Physically attractive
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Evolution and Jealousy

• Jealousy an emotional state that is aroused by a
  perceived threat to a valued relationship
• Buss et al. (1992) asked his participants to
  think of a committed romantic relationship that
  they had been in. And then they asked which of
  the following would distress or upset them more?
• Imagining your partner forming a deep emotional
  attachment to that person.
• Imagining your partner enjoying passionate sexual
  intercourse with that other person.

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Evolution and Jealousy

• Buss et al. (1992)
• male concern for paternity (sexual attachment)
• women concern for resources (emotional attachment)

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2. Physical Attractiveness

• Stereotype What is beautiful is good.
• Attractive people are judged to be more
  sensitive, kind, interesting, strong, poised,
  modest, sociable, outgoing, exciting, and
  sexually warm and responsive.
• Though not more honest or concerned for others in
  North America.
• Some truth to the stereotype more attractive,
  more relaxed and socially polished (due to
  self-fulfilling prophecy).

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2. Physical Attractiveness

• Constraints on what is beautiful is good
  assumption.
• 1. The Matching Hypothesis
• White (1980) found that match in physical
  attractiveness predicted courtship progress over
  9 months.
• 2. Costs of Beauty
• What is beautiful is not good in ALL ways.
  Negative stereotypes related to attractive people
  are vain and promiscuous (Dermer Theil, 1975).
  Also they receive more unwanted sexual advances.
• 3. What is good (likeable) is also beautiful.

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3. Similarity

• Physical Attractiveness
• Attitudes
• Complementarity (You complete me.)
• No real evidence for this.

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4. Reciprocity

• We tend to like those who like us.
• In a study by Curtis and Miller (1986)
• 60 same-sex pairs of previously unacquainted
  students
• 5-min. get-to-know-you conversation
• Manipulate Person As belief about Person Bs
  feelings for them
• Person B likes you
• Person B dislikes you
• 10-min. discussion
• Measure As and Bs liking

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4. Reciprocity
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Reward Theory of Attraction

• We are attracted to those whose behaviour is
  rewarding to us or to those whom we associate
  with rewarding events. If the relationship gives
  us more rewards than costs, we will like it.
• Direct Rewards
• Positive consequences that we experience as a
  result of the other persons presence (e.g.,
  makes us feel good, capable, interesting)
• Indirect Rewards
• Positive consequences that we experience in the
  other persons presence, but not as a result of
  that persons presence (e.g., food, drink, music
  a liking-by-association effect)

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How are the factors that influence attraction
related to the Reward Theory?
1. Proximity (partners or friends close by) -
costs less time and effort 2. Physical
Attractiveness (pretty partners or friends) -
Benefit by associating with them and they offer
desirable traits 3. Similarity (similar partners
or friends) - Assume they like us in return,
validate us 4. Reciprocity (partners or friends
who like us) - We like to be liked, its rewarding.
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The Top 3Desired Qualities in a Mate(Buss
Barnes, 1986 Sprecher, 1998)

• Both men and women say...
• warmth and kindness
• desirable personality
• being liked in return

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Love and Passion
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The role of arousing activities

• Couples assigned to engage in exciting
  activities (vs. pleasant but unexciting or
  control) showed greater increase in relationship
  quality over 10 weeks (Reissman, Aron, Bergman,
  1993)

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Arousal and Attraction
Capilano Canyon Suspension Bridge ...a tendency
to tilt, sway, and wobble, creating the
impression that one is about to fall over the
side... ...230-foot drop to rocks and shallow
rapids below the bridge...
Control Bridge Constructed of heavy cedar 10
feet above a small, shallow rivulet high
handrails and did not tilt or sway
(Dutton Aron, 1974)
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Love on a bridge
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(Dutton Aron, 1974)
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Influences of Arousal on Attraction

• Schacter and Singers two-factor theory of
  emotion
• we feel aroused and then infer the most plausible
  emotion
• If aroused, might misattribute to another person
• Label it love

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Love and Passion
If a man (woman) had all the other qualities you
desired, would you marry this person if you were
not in love with him (her)? ____ Yes
____ No
(Levine, Sato, Hashimoto, Verma, 1995)
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Love and Passion
If a man (woman) had all the other qualities you
desired, would you marry this person if you were
not in love with him (her)? ____ Yes
____ No
(Levine, Sato, Hashimoto, Verma, 1995)
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Love over time

• Romantic love has a limited life-span
• 18 - 30 months (Hazan, 1999)
• When relationships last, companionate love
  appears to be what lasts...
• Most common responses among couples married over
  15 years when asked why their marriages had
  lasted (Lauer Lauer, 1985).
• My spouse is my best friend.
• I like my spouse as a person.

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Is the drop in romantic love inevitable?

• Although couples on average experienced declines
  in marital quality over the first 4 years of
  marriage, 10 experienced an increase (Karney
  Bradbury, 1997).
• Among couples married 30 years or longer, a small
  but significant number report high levels of
  passion (e.g., I melt when I look into my
  partners eyes.) (Tucker Aron, 1993).

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Questions?
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Social Psychological Research at York?

• I would like to get involved in research at
  York, how do I volunteer in a lab?
• Figure out what area of psychology you like best.
  What can maintain your interest?
• Check out people who are in that area and their
  websites. What type of research do they do?
• Do they accept volunteers into their lab? Ask
  their graduate students how their lab works.
• This is probably the best way to find a thesis
  supervisor and to learn more about research.
• When?

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Who are the Social/Personality Researchers at
York?

• Gord Flett perfectionism
• Esther Greenglass stress, coping,
  rehabilitation, and health psychology
• Michaela Hynie norms, values, relationships,
  and cross-cultural psychology

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Who are the Social/Personality Researchers at
York?

• Kerry Kawakami social cognition, prejudice,
  stereotyping
• Richard Lalonde intergroup identity, intergroup
  behaviour, and cross-cultural psychology
• Raymond Mar relationships with fictional others,
  impact of narratives

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Who are the Social/Personality Researchers at
York?

• Doug McCann - social information processing,
  self, depression
• Ian McGregor self and threats to the self,
  extremism
• Regina Schuller - law and Social Psychology,
  biases in the courtroom

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Who are the Social/Personality Researchers at
York?

• Jenn Steele social cognition and prejudice from
  the victims perspective
• Ward Struthers attribution research,
  organizational psychology, forgiveness, social
  cognition
• David Wiesenthal - driving behaviour with an
  emphasis on stress and aggression

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Social Psychological Research at York?

• A Specialized Honours Thesis
• You need to apply to this program when you are
  completing your second year deadline May 4,
  2008
• Need to have a cumulative GPA of 7.0 (B) across
  a minimum of 53 credits and the courses must
  include
• Psyc 1010 Intro Psychology
• Psyc 2030 Intro Research Methods
• Psyc 2020 Statistics 1 and 11 or equivalent
• A specialized honours will make you more
  competitive for graduate school by
• Guaranteeing you an undergraduate thesis
  supervisor
• Increasing course requirements in research
  methods, statistics, and history of psychology
• Providing you with a more prestigious honours
  degree because of higher entrance, maintenance,
  and graduation requirements.
• To apply check out http//www.yorku.ca/health/psy
  c/after2008.htm
• or go to BSB 147 (930-330 M-F)

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Social Psychological Research after York?

• Graduate school
• Research experience (volunteer work and honours
  thesis project)
• Reference letters
• GREs and grades
• Personal Statement
• Check out all the programs that interest you (S/P
  areas at Waterloo, Toronto, Western, Queens, UBC,
  York, etc). Who is doing research that you are
  interested in. Personally approach that faculty
  member and ask about their lab, their research,
  and whether they are planning on taking on
  graduate students that year. Talk to their
  graduate students.

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Questions?
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Final Exam

• 200 - 500, Thursday, April 10th, SLH-A and
  SLH-F
• MC 130 questions
• Questions will be very similar to first two
  exams.
• Please remember to bring student ID with photo
  and a pencil.
• Show up for the exam on time.
• If you have any questions about the material or
  the exam, please contact
• Fran Karmali - francine.karmali_at_gmail.com
• Noelia Vasquez - noeliav_at_yorku.ca.

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Questions?
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Course Evaluations

• Feedback is important to improving courses.
• The evaluations are entirely confidential.
• Instructors do not receive the evaluation results
  until after the final grades are assigned.
• http//courseevaluations.yorku.ca
• Overall evaluation of course (written comments)
• Evaluation of lecture
• Evaluation of tutorial (n/a)
• Evaluation of lab (n/a)
• The link closes April 6, 2008.
• If you have any problems, contact
• helpdesk_at_yorku.ca
• [phone] ext 55800

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Thats all folks

• I just want to thank you. This has been a fun
  class to teach. I have appreciated your
  participation.
• Good luck on your final.
• Marks will be posted within 2 weeks on the course
  website.
• Enjoy your summer.