Salience of similarity awareness and attraction: A comparison of balance vs reinforcement predictions

Reinforcement and balance theory are both viable explanatory contenders for attraction processes. Differential predictions were derived and tested. Ss rated their attraction toward five strangers who were .00, .25, .50, .75, or 1.00 similax in attitudes. Half of the Ss rated perceived similarity to the strangers prior to making the attraction ratings (similarity]then liking condition) and the other half rated attraction prior to similarity ratings (liking/then similarity condition). Balance theory would predict an interaction between order of rating conditions and proportion of similar attitudes in determining attraction. Results showed that the only significant effect was due to proportion of similar attitudes. Factor analyses of the rating data showed that attraction and similarity ratings loaded on different factors. This result indicates that perceived similarity does not necessarily mediate attraction. Trend analyses suggested that the reverse may hold to some extent; perception of attraction may partially determine perceived similarity. This result suggests that a restricted balance model may be viable. However, the preponderance of the evidence supported reinforcement theory.     

Belief similarity and attitude similarity as determinants of interpersonal attraction

It was predicted that attraction would be a function of both attitude similarity and belief similarity, but that attitude similarity would have the greater influence. In Expt I, 60 subjects were presented with strangers that were either similar or dissimilar on attitude and on belief. Attraction was a positive function of both attitude similarity (p < .05) and belief similarity (p < .01). Experiment II replicated and extended Expt I with the addition of a 50% similar group for both attitude and belief. Attraction was a positive linear function of both attitude similarity (p < .001) and belief similarity (p < .02); departure from linearity was not significant. Attitude similarity also had greater effects on other aspects of interpersonal evaluation than belief similarity. The results were discussed in terms of the locus of reinforcement of attitude similarity and of belief similarity.     

Depression and interpersonal attraction: the role of perceived similarity

We hypothesized that depressed individuals are generally viewed as dissimilar and that this perceived dissimilarity contributes to negative reactions to the depressed. In addition, we hypothesized that if perceived similarity affects liking of depressed individuals, then nondepressed subjects should prefer nondepressed targets, but depressed subjects should not share this preference. To test these hypotheses, depressed and nondepressed subjects received information about two targets, both either depressed or nondepressed, one attitudinally dissimilar and one attitudinally similar. They were then asked to fill out an attraction measure and an interest in meeting measure for each target. The results clearly supported the primary hypotheses, demonstrating that nondepressed subjects preferred nondepressed targets and perceived them as more similar than depressed targets, and that this preference for nondepressed targets is not shared by depressed subjects. Tests of supplementary hypotheses also confirmed that depressed subjects perceive their best friends as being more depressed and more dissimilar than do nondepressed subjects. The implications of these findings for the social world of the depressed were discussed.     

Effects of negative ions on interpersonal attraction: evidence for intensification

In Study 1, female subjects received information suggesting either that a stranger (a female accomplice) shared their attitudes and evaluated them positively or that a stranger did not share their attitudes and evaluated them negatively. These procedures took place in the presence of a low (ambient) or high level of negative ions. On the basis of previous research, it was predicted that a high level of negative ions would intensify subjects' reactions to the stranger, thus enhancing their evaluations of her when she seemed to share their attitudes and to like them, but reducing these evaluations when she did not share their attitudes and disliked them. Results offered support for these predictions. In Study 2, female subjects performed two tasks (letter and digit copying) in the presence of a low or high concentration of negative ions. Their blood pressure and pulse were measured at several points during the experiment. Results indicated that on various trials both systolic and diastolic blood pressure were higher in the high-ions than in the low-ions condition. In addition, subjects reported higher levels of subjective arousal and made significantly more errors on the letter-copying task in the presence of a high concentration of negative ions. Together, the results of these studies were interpreted as offering support for the view that high concentrations of negative ions can increase both physiological and psychological (subjective) arousal.     

Effects of musically evoked affect on women's interpersonal attraction toward and perceptual judgments of physical attractiveness of men

In a between-subjects design, female subjects evaluated photographs of attractive and unattractive stimulus males while listening to positive affect-evoking rock music, negative affect-evoking avant-garde music, or no music at all. Consistent with previous research, subjects evaluated attractive stimulus males more positively than unattractive males on a variety of interpersonal judgment dimensions. Furthermore, subjects responded with more positive evaluations of personal character of, and attraction toward, stimulus persons in the rock music as compared to the avant-garde music condition. Finally, assessments of physical attractiveness were influenced by the music conditions, with stimulus persons judged of greater physical attractiveness in the rock as compared with the avant-garde music condition. The results are discussed in terms of extending the Byrne-Clore reinforcement-affect model of interpersonal attraction.     

Decreasing junk food consumption: A comparison of self-perception theory and reinforcement theory

A behavior reduction procedure based on self-perception theory was developed, and its efficacy was compared to that of a common behavior modification intervention based on traditional reinforcement theory. Following a baseline phase, university students were monetarily reinforced for increasing (in the self-perception condition) or decreasing (in the behavior modification condition) their consumption of junk food. Subsequently, the magnitude of reinforcement was reduced and, finally, the reinforcement contingency was withdrawn. The intervention based on reinforcement theory produced the predicted decrease in junk food consumption while the intervention was in effect, and the postreinforcement intake of subjects in that condition remained below baseline. However, despite an increase in junk food consumption during the intervention phase in the self-perception condition, the hypothesized overjustification effect was not produced. While the results did not support self-perception theory, the data were consistent with an alternative account of the overjustification effect proposed by Williams (1980).This research was partially supported by National Science Foundation Grant SPI8026324 to John F. Kremer and Robert G. Bringle.     

Autobiographical memory functions of nostalgia in comparison to rumination and counterfactual thinking: similarity and uniqueness

We compared and contrasted nostalgia with rumination and counterfactual thinking in terms of their autobiographical memory functions. Specifically, we assessed individual differences in nostalgia, rumination, and counterfactual thinking, which we then linked to self-reported functions or uses of autobiographical memory (Self-Regard, Boredom Reduction, Death Preparation, Intimacy Maintenance, Conversation, Teach/Inform, and Bitterness Revival). We tested which memory functions are shared and which are uniquely linked to nostalgia. The commonality among nostalgia, rumination, and counterfactual thinking resides in their shared positive associations with all memory functions: individuals who evinced a stronger propensity towards past-oriented thought (as manifested in nostalgia, rumination, and counterfactual thinking) reported greater overall recruitment of memories in the service of present functioning. The uniqueness of nostalgia resides in its comparatively strong positive associations with Intimacy Maintenance, Teach/Inform, and Self-Regard and weak association with Bitterness Revival. In all, nostalgia possesses a more positive functional signature than do rumination and counterfactual thinking.     

Prototypical similarity,self-categorization,and depersonalized attraction: A perspective on group cohesiveness

In contrast to traditional approaches that widely equate group cohesiveness with interpersonal attraction, self-categorization theoryargues that self-categorization depersonalizes perception in terms of the group prototype, and transforms the basis of interindividual attitude (liking) from idiosyncracy into prototypicality. An implication is that while attraction in interpersonal relationships relates to overall similarity, attraction among group members is based on prototypical similarity. To test this idea, subjects (N = 219) participated in an experiment in which they reported their attitude towards an individual who would be their partner, or a fellow group member (of either group ‘Visual’ or group ‘Tactile’) for a subsequent task. Subject-target similarity varied on each of two dimensions: dimension ‘A’ was more prototypical of group ‘Visual’, and dimension ‘F’ of group ‘Tactile’. The independent variables of social orientation (interpersonal, group ‘Visual’, group ‘Tactile’), similarity on dimension A (A ±), and dimension F(F±) were manipulated in a 3 × 2 × 2 design. The three hypotheses tested in this experiment were generally supported. Subjects preferred prototypically similar group members to interpersonal partners, and downgraded prototypically dissisimilar group members (HI). Identification was positively related to target evaluation (H2), more strongly for prototypically similar than dissimilar targets (H3), and the identification-attraction relationship was mediated by perceived prototypical similarity. Group-based effects were independent of perceptions of overall similarity.     

The relative effects of competence and likability on interpersonal attraction

Undergraduate students in Singapore (N = 80) learned about the competence (low vs. high) and likability (low vs. high) of a future interaction partner and indicated their attraction toward that stranger. The effect of likability was two times as large as that of competence. Because of the additive effects of the two manipulated factors on attraction, the authors interpreted the preference for lovable fools over competent jerks as an outcome of a generalized supremacy of likability over competence.     

BIS,BAS, and response conflict: Testing predictions of the revised reinforcement sensitivity theory

Gray’s (1970) reinforcement sensitivity theory (RST) was recently updated (Gray & McNaughton, 2000), but the changes have not received extensive empirical validation. The study tests three novel predictions of the revised RST. First, the behavioral activation system (BAS) is expected to be sensitive to both conditioned and unconditioned incentives. Second, the behavioral inhibition system (BIS) is expected to be sensitive to conflicting incentives such as between unconditioned and conditioned stimuli, and not to avoidance responses or aversive stimuli alone. Third, during approach-avoidance conflicts only, BAS is expected to moderate BIS responses to conflict such that individuals with high BAS show the strongest effect of BIS. In order to test these hypotheses, we developed a novel incentive task that crosses approach/avoidance conditioned responses to appetitive/aversive unconditioned stimuli. Conflict between unconditioned and conditioned stimuli occurred on the approach-aversive and avoid-appetitive trials. Results confirm the predictions and provide support for the revised RST.     

Similarity attraction and actually selecting similar others: How cross-societal differences in relational mobility affect interpersonal similarity in Japan and the USA

Several studies have demonstrated that similarity between friendship partners is higher in the West than in East Asian countries. We hypothesized that these differences could be explained by relational mobility, or the number of opportunities to form new relationships in a given society. Through two studies, we confirmed that whereas the preference for similarity did not differ, similarity between friendship partners was higher in the USA than in Japan. Furthermore, a measure of relational mobility mediated the cultural difference in similarity, supporting our hypothesis. The effectiveness of considering socio-ecological factors when interpreting cultural differences in behaviour is discussed.     

The effects of competent behavior on interpersonal attraction and task leadership

Past research relating to competence and the status of sex-role stereotypes has produced highly divergent and confusing results, while research into their effects on leadership choices has been scarce. With these issues in mind, the current study varied subject sex, competence, and confederate sex to evaluate their influence on attraction, leadership choice, and sex-role stereotyping on a number of bipolar items. Results revealed that competent womenw ere found to be as attractive as competent men, while incompetent women were found to be more attractive than incompetent men. Leadership remained a masculine trait; women assumed much less responsibility for leadership than did men. Thus, while women may be viewed as being as attractive as men when both are competent, they are not given, nor do they assume equivalent amounts of responsibility for leadership. There was generally a lack of sex-role stereotyping on bipolar items.