Human+Relationships

General framework

 * To what extent do biological, cognitive and sociocultural factors influence human relationships?
 * Evaluate psychological research (that is, theories and/or studies) relevant to the study of human relationships.

Distinguish between altruism and prosocial behaviour

 * Pro-social behavior benefits others or has positive social consequences (Staub, 1978)
 * Helping behavior intentionally helps or benefits others in the spirit of making a difference
 * Altruistic behavior is helping someone else without reward and can even be at some cost to yourself
 * However, distinguish between fairness and actual altruism (List; Fehr)

Contrast two theories explaining altruism in humans

 * Negative-state relief model (Schaller and Cialdini, 1988) - motivated to reduce distress experienced by watching others in awful situations
 * does not explain why some people who experience distress do not act
 * cannot predict behavior
 * Empathy-altruism model (Batson //et al//., 1981) - we experience either
 * personal distress - anxiety or fear which motivates us to help egoistically to relieve our fear or anxiety
 * empathetic concern - sympathy or compassion which motivates us to help where the goal is relieving the person's suffering (not your own fear or anxiety)

Using one or more research studies, explain cross-cultural differences in prosocial behavior

 * Whiting (1979) found that nurturing behavior in children (3-11) is higher in Kenya, Mexico and the Philippines compared to US (who scored lowest)
 * Graves and Graves (1985) - family environment where you are expected to care for younger children increases prosocial behavior
 * Levine et al. studies
 * US population density predicts prosocial behavior (lower = more likely to help)
 * <span style="mso-list: l1 level2 lfo4; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; tab-stops: list 1.0in;">Replicated in 23 cities - Rio de janeiro and San Jose were most likely to help (role of collectivist society?)
 * <span style="mso-list: l1 level2 lfo4; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; tab-stops: list 1.0in;">Low economically productive countries are more likely to help

Examine factors influencing bystanderism

 * <span style="mso-list: l9 level1 lfo5; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; tab-stops: list .5in;">Good Samaritan study (Piliavin et al., 1969)
 * <span style="mso-list: l9 level1 lfo5; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; tab-stops: list .5in;">Princeton Good Samaritan study (Darley and Batson, 1973)
 * <span style="mso-list: l9 level1 lfo5; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; tab-stops: list .5in;">Replication of Princeton Good Samaritan study (Keating)
 * <span style="mso-list: l9 level1 lfo5; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; tab-stops: list .5in;">Superordinate vs subordinate football team identities influences helping in emergencies (Levine et al., 2005)
 * <span style="mso-list: l9 level1 lfo5; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; tab-stops: list .5in;">Group size and diffusion of responsibility smoke experiment (Darley and Latane, 1968)
 * <span style="mso-list: l9 level1 lfo5; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; tab-stops: list .5in;">Diffusion of responsibility seizure experiment (Darley and Latane, 1968)
 * <span style="mso-list: l9 level1 lfo5; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; tab-stops: list .5in;">Group size and salient identity (Levine and Crowther, 2008)

Biological

 * <span style="mso-list: l8 level1 lfo6; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; tab-stops: list .5in;">Pheromones?
 * <span style="mso-list: l8 level1 lfo6; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; tab-stops: list .5in;">Oxytocin and vasopressin
 * <span style="mso-list: l8 level1 lfo6; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; tab-stops: list .5in;">Face symmetry
 * <span style="mso-list: l8 level1 lfo6; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; tab-stops: list .5in;">Hormone levels (ovulation vs non-ovulation) can affect female attraction to men
 * <span style="mso-list: l8 level1 lfo6; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; tab-stops: list .5in;">Waist-to-hip-ratio affects male attraction to females (Johnson and Tassinary, 2005)

Cognitive

 * <span style="mso-list: l7 level1 lfo7; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; tab-stops: list .5in;">Attraction-similarity model (Morry, 2007) - attracted to people similar to ourselves
 * <span style="mso-list: l7 level2 lfo7; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; tab-stops: list 1.0in;">Questionnaire confirmed Morry's hypothesis but only conducted on young Americans (Markey et al., 2007)

Sociocultural

 * <span style="mso-list: l13 level1 lfo8; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; tab-stops: list .5in;">Cultural norms - //e.g//. thinness in Western culture
 * <span style="mso-list: l13 level1 lfo8; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; tab-stops: list .5in;">Proximity determines attraction in dorm rooms (Festinger et al., 1950), elderly homes and college campuses (Nahemow and Lawton, 1975)
 * <span style="mso-list: l13 level2 lfo8; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; tab-stops: list 1.0in;">Confirmation of proximity including likelihood of dislike based on proximity and probability of face-to-face contact (Ebbesen et al., 1976)
 * <span style="mso-list: l13 level3 lfo8; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; tab-stops: list 1.5in;">People who choose to participate in interviews are perhaps more likely to gossip and/or have more sociable personalities

Explain the role that culture plays in the formation and maintenance of relationships

 * <span style="mso-list: l14 level1 lfo9; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; tab-stops: list .5in;">Cross-cultural perspectives on infidelity (Druckerman, 2007)
 * <span style="mso-list: l14 level2 lfo9; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; tab-stops: list 1.0in;">Japanese do not consider it cheating if you pay for sex
 * <span style="mso-list: l14 level2 lfo9; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; tab-stops: list 1.0in;">Russians do not consider it cheating if you have extramarital sex while on vacation at a beach resort
 * <span style="mso-list: l14 level2 lfo9; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; tab-stops: list 1.0in;">South Africans consider inebriation a proper excuse for cheating - they are forgiven

Analyse why relationships may change or end

 * <span style="mso-list: l4 level1 lfo10; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; tab-stops: list .5in;">MHC genes are too similar
 * <span style="mso-list: l4 level1 lfo10; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; tab-stops: list .5in;">Social exchange theory (Kelley and Thibaut, 1959)
 * <span style="mso-list: l4 level2 lfo10; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; tab-stops: list 1.0in;">Based on cost-benefit analysis where cost of relationship must not outweigh the benefits
 * <span style="mso-list: l4 level1 lfo10; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; tab-stops: list .5in;">Equity theory (Walster, 1978)
 * <span style="mso-list: l4 level2 lfo10; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; tab-stops: list 1.0in;">Equality is important in maintenance of fidelity
 * <span style="mso-list: l4 level2 lfo10; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; tab-stops: list 1.0in;">Individuals who feel deprived or under-benefited are more likely to cheat than individuals who feel fairly treated or over-benefited (Hatfield, 1979)
 * <span style="mso-list: l4 level1 lfo10; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; tab-stops: list .5in;">Fatal attraction theory (Felmlee, 1995)
 * <span style="mso-list: l4 level2 lfo10; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; tab-stops: list 1.0in;">Factor that caused initial attraction is also responsible for its ultimate demise
 * <span style="mso-list: l4 level3 lfo10; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; tab-stops: list 1.5in;">A musician that lives freely and day-to-day is initially attractive but long-term his partner may view him as undesirable to settle down with

Biological

 * <span style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo11; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; tab-stops: list .5in;">Testosterone
 * <span style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo11; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; tab-stops: list .5in;">Psychopath gene (XYY)

Cognitive

 * <span style="mso-list: l11 level1 lfo12; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; tab-stops: list .5in;">Social cognition
 * <span style="mso-list: l11 level1 lfo12; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; tab-stops: list .5in;">Egotism, narcissism and self-esteem (Baumeister and Bushman, 1998)

Sociocultural

 * <span style="mso-list: l6 level1 lfo13; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; tab-stops: list .5in;">Power differences
 * <span style="mso-list: l6 level1 lfo13; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; tab-stops: list .5in;">Deindividuation

Discuss the relative effectiveness of two strategies for reducing violence

 * <span style="mso-list: l3 level1 lfo14; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; tab-stops: list .5in;">Multiculturalism
 * <span style="mso-list: l3 level1 lfo14; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; tab-stops: list .5in;">Color blindness
 * <span style="mso-list: l3 level1 lfo14; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; tab-stops: list .5in;">Extended Contact

Additional Resources

 * <span style="mso-list: l2 level1 lfo15; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; tab-stops: list .5in;">Can the IAT Predict the Failure of a Relationship?
 * <span style="mso-list: l2 level1 lfo15; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; tab-stops: list .5in;">Violent Pride
 * <span style="mso-list: l2 level1 lfo15; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; tab-stops: list .5in;">The Violent Brain
 * <span style="mso-list: l2 level1 lfo15; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; tab-stops: list .5in;">Inside the Terrorist Mind
 * <span style="mso-list: l2 level1 lfo15; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; tab-stops: list .5in;">Inside the Mind of a Suicide Bomber
 * <span style="mso-list: l2 level1 lfo15; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; tab-stops: list .5in;">How Group-think Makes Killers
 * <span style="mso-list: l2 level1 lfo15; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; tab-stops: list .5in;">The Samaritan Paradox
 * <span style="mso-list: l2 level1 lfo15; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; tab-stops: list .5in;">Sex and the Secret Nerve