Friend support of dating relationships: Comparing relationship type,friend and partner perspectives

This study assessed the role of friends in dating relationships, comparing on–off and noncyclical relationships. Participants (N = 460) reported on the friend most familiar with their current or recent dating relationship. We examined friend support of and influence on the dating relationship and the influence of the dating relationship on the friendship. Participants' friends (N = 98) completed a similar survey to compare participants' and friends' perceptions. On–off partners reported less support for the dating relationship than did noncyclical partners. On–off partners also reported greater openness, whereas friends reported greater frequency, of communicating about the dating relationship. Friends also felt the relationship changed the friendship more; friends of on–off partners in particular reported more positive change to their friendship.     

Influences of Parental and Best Friends' Smoking and Drinking on Adolescent Use: A Longitudinal Study1

Many studies have dealt with the relative impact of parents and peers on adolescent substance use. However, only a few studies have explored the role of adolescents themselves in social relationships. Homogeneity in behavioral patterns within friendships can also be generated by selective association. Acknowledgment of selection processes might shed new light on the debate on the influences of parents and friends. This paper examines the impact of parental and best friends' smoking and drinking on adolescents' use, using data (N= 1,063) from a 3-wave, 5-year longitudinal study. The results show that friends' smoking did not affect adolescent smoking over time. Only in early adolescence did friends' drinking exert an influence on subjects' alcohol use. On the other hand, parental use had a small but significant impact on their offspring. Furthermore, support was found for processes of selective association.     

Narcissism and Discrepancy Between Self and Friends' Perceptions of Personality

Most research on narcissism and person perception has used strangers as perceivers. However, research has demonstrated that strangers' ratings are influenced by narcissists' stylish appearance (Back, Schmukle, & Egloff, 2010). In the present study, we recruited participants and their close friends, individuals whose close relationship should immunize them to participants' superficial appearance cues. We investigated the relation between narcissism and personality ratings by self and friends. Participants (N = 66; 38 women; M_age = 20.83 years) completed the Narcissistic Personality Inventory (Raskin & Terry, 1988) and described their personality on the 100‐item California Adult Q‐Sort (CAQ; Block, 2008). Participants' personality was also described on the CAQ by close friends. The “optimally adjusted individual” prototype was used to summarize participant and friend personality ratings (Block, 2008). Participants with high narcissism scores were ascribed higher optimal adjustment by self than by friends. Narcissistic individuals' self‐ratings were extremely positive and more favorable than friends' ratings of them.     

Gay males’ intimate relationship quality: The roles of attachment security,gay identity,social support,and income

Past research of relationship quality in same–sex couples has emphasized similarities with heterosexual couples. The present study examined both general and gay–specific intra– and interpersonal factors as predictors of gay men's relationship durability and relationship satisfaction. Our proposed path model postulated effects of contextual variables on self and relationships (i.e., social support/acceptance as context for attachment security, self–acceptance, and intimate relationships). The data, collected from an Israeli sample of gay men (N = 121), supported this model. All hypothesized paths were significant: Attachment security mediated the association of perceived friends’ support and self–acceptance with relationship quality, self–acceptance mediated the association of self–definition and perceived friends’ acceptance with relationship quality, and income had a direct association with relationship quality.     

Dynamics of perceived social network support for same‐sex versus mixed‐sex relationships

Individuals in mixed‐sex (n = 248) and same‐sex (n = 159) romantic relationships completed several online questions for each member of their social network, including the member's perceived support for their romantic relationship. Those in same‐sex relationships perceived less support for their relationship, but only from family members, not from friends. Levels of relationship support were lower among subjectively more distant network members than among closer network members. As hypothesized, associations between perceived support for the relationship and relationship, mental, and physical well‐being were weaker for those in same‐sex compared to mixed‐sex relationships. Principles of social network management and attributional ambiguity were used to explain the findings.     

Relationship of Attachment and Social Support to College Students' Adjustment Following a Relationship Breakup

Two constructs integral to adolescent development, continuing parental attachment and social support, were investigated to assess whether the constructs are differentially related to indices of adjustment following a romantic relationship breakup. Participants were 241 undergraduate students (M age = 20.62 years, 61% female, 39% male) with a relationship breakup within the last year. As hypothesized, hierarchical regression analyses showed that current attachment levels were related to the outcome variables. Indices of social support accounted for additional variance only when broadly conceptualized as perceived connection to the social environment, rather than perceived support from family and friends. Implications for counseling are discussed.     

My Mother: My Best Friend? Adults’ Relationships with Significant Others Across the Lifespan

In order to investigate the significance of adults’ relationship to their parents, this relationship is compared to relationships with siblings, friends, partners, and children. German adults (N = 902) between the ages of 20 and 86 completed the Network of Relationships Inventory (Furman and Buhrmester 1992). Participants felt most supported by their partners, followed by their children, mothers, friends, fathers, and siblings. Conflicts were more frequently found within the family (especially with the partner, followed by children, mothers, fathers, and siblings) than with friends. Except for partner relationships, both conflict and support decreased with age. Concerning relative power within their relationships, partners, mothers, and siblings are seen as equals, friends and especially fathers are perceived as more powerful, and children as less, yet increasingly powerful. Regarding all relationship types and relationship qualities, the differences between women and men were small.     

Adolescent individuation in relation to parents and friends: Age and gender differences

The general aim of the study was to examine age and gender differences in various aspects of dependency needs and autonomy strivings of Slovene adolescents in relations to parents and friends. Another research question was whether the components of separation – individuation in relation to parents were related to four aspects of adolescent – friends relationships which resemble some aspects of separation – individuation (i.e., support seeking from friends, friends' idealization, successful separation, fear of losing friends' love). The questionnaires were given to 495 adolescents in Grades 7 to 12. Results showed that early adolescence is a period during which the most prominent changes occur in individuation process. In comparison with other groups, seventh graders showed the highest levels of dependency needs (i.e., high support seeking, high parental idealization). Another group of early adolescents (eighth graders) appeared to be the most ambivalent group as far as individuation towards parents is concerned. A pattern of successful individuation was most evident in the two late adolescent groups. Girls reported greater support seeking and more successful individuation from parents and friends than boys. On the other hand, boys showed more excessive autonomy strivings in their individuation, but they also reported more parental and friends' idealization than girls. We found a support for the thesis about positive associations between the aspects of separation – individuation that are reflected in adolescent – parents and adolescent – friends relations. However, the results also support the thesis that in the case of less satisfactory relations with parents adolescents can compensate for the deprivation of their dependency needs by an increased support seeking in their relations with friends.     

Are your cross‐ethnic friends ethnic and/or national group identifiers? The role of own and perceived cross‐ethnic friend's identities on outgroup attitudes and multiculturalism

We investigated how own ethnic and national identities and perceived ethnic and national identities of close cross‐ethnic friends may predict outgroup attitudes and multiculturalism among Turkish (majority status, N = 197) and Kurdish (minority status, N = 80) ethnic group members in Turkey (M_age = 21.12, SD = 2.59, 69.7% females, 30.3% males). Compared with Turkish participants, Kurdish participants were more asymmetrical in rating their cross‐ethnic friend's identities relative to their own, reporting higher ethnic identity, but lower national identity for themselves. Own ethnic identity was negatively associated with attitudes and multiculturalism, whereas own national identity was positively associated with only attitudes. Perceived cross‐ethnic friend's national identity was positively related to both outgroup attitudes and multiculturalism. Shared national identification (high levels of own and friend's national identity) led to most positive outgroup attitudes and highest support for multiculturalism. Findings were discussed in the light of social identity and common ingroup identity models.     

Romantic partners’perceptions of social network attributes with the passage of time and relationship transitions

Data from five waves of a longitudinal study of romantic couples were analyzed to examine how the partners’perceptions of social network attributes (i.e., network approval for the relationship, network overlap, liking for partner's network) change with the passage of time and relationship transitions. The results indicated that perceptions of network approval, especially from the male partner's friends, tended to increase over time for the participants whose relationship remained intact throughout the longitudinal study. Furthermore, the transitions to engagement and to marriage were also associated with an increase in network approval from the male's friends. Individuals who experienced a breakup during the study reported more network approval than disapproval for the breakup. Finally, the likelihood of a breakup was significantly lower the more approval women reported from their friends and the more women expressed liking for their partner's family at Time 1 (these same associations were nonsignificant for men). These findings provide support for various social network perspectives, including social reactance (Lewis, 1973).     

The Buffering Role of Social Support Perceptions in Relation to Eating Disturbances among Women in Abusive Dating Relationships

Abuse is often associated with diminished social support networks, which typically serve to buffer individuals against stress-related outcomes, including eating disorders. The goal of the present study was to examine whether eating disturbances among women in abusive dating relationships varied as function of perceived social support. Although both physical and psychological aggression in women's (N=83) dating relationships was associated with symptomatic dieting and bulimic symptoms, only psychological aggression predicted unique variance. Although psychological aggression was directly related to eating symptoms, support from friends diminished the relation to bulimic symptoms, possibly because such support facilitated women's ability to distract themselves from their abusive situations. In contrast, perceived parental support buffered women in physically abusive relationships from disturbed eating patterns. Thus, depending on the nature of abuse women experienced, social support resources were differentially effective in buffering women from eating disturbances.     

Longing for Ex‐Partners out of Fear of Being Single

This research investigated whether people who fear being single have a more difficult time letting go of ex‐partners following a romantic breakup. Data were collected in a cross‐sectional study (N = 209, 64% women, M_age = 30 years old) as well as a 1‐month daily experience study of individuals who just went through a romantic breakup (N = 117, 44% women, M_age = 27 years old). Findings from both studies revealed that those with stronger fear of being single (Spielmann et al., 2013) reported greater longing for their ex‐partners. Pre‐ to post‐breakup analyses revealed that fear of being single increased after a breakup, regardless of who initiated the breakup. Within‐day analyses revealed that longing for an ex‐partner and attempts to renew the relationship were greater on days with stronger fear of being single. Lagged‐day analyses provided support for the conclusion that fear of being single increased longing and renewal attempts over time, but longing and renewal attempts did not influence fear of being single. These findings suggest that fear of being single is a particularly useful construct for understanding the romantic detachment process.     

Support processes in same‐ and mixed‐sex relationships: Type and source matters

Research has established that social support for relationships is an important predictor of well‐being. However, the underlying assumption that social support specifically for relationships is a separate construct from general social support has not been properly tested empirically, nor has the question of whether support processes vary by source (friends vs. family). The current study (N = 1,281) used confirmatory factor analysis and structural equation modeling to address these issues. Support was found for a theoretical model in which social support specifically for relationships predicts relationship well‐being and, in turn, mental and physical health, even while controlling for general social support. Somewhat different patterns were found by source of support (family vs. friends) and by relationship type (same sex vs. mixed sex).     

Remembering Friends as Not So Friendly in Competitive and Bargaining Social Interactions

From children's schoolyard play to executives' boardroom negotiations, competitive and bargaining interactions are common to everyday life. Sometimes, the interacting parties are socially close and sometimes not. In this research, we examine how friendship influences memory for actions in such interactions. Dyads consisting of either friends or strangers played a competitive card game (Study 1) or the ultimatum game (Studies 2 and 4) and then recalled the interaction. We find that participants remembered friends' play as more competitive (Study 1) and less generous (Studies 2 and 4) than strangers' play, even when friends' actual play was more generous than that of strangers (Studies 2 and 4). Friendship did not affect recall for one's own play. In a workplace setting, Study 3 reveals people expect more of work colleagues who are friends than of work colleagues who are acquaintances. Study 4 tests our complete model and shows that people expect more of friends than of strangers and that this difference in expectations explains the less favorable memory for friend's actions. Our findings are consistent with a negative disconfirmation account whereby people expect their friends to be less competitive and more generous, and when these expectations are violated, people remember friends' actions more negatively than they actually were. Much research shows positive effects of friendship norms on actual behavior. We demonstrate a negative effect on people's memory of friends' behavior in competitive and bargaining social interactions. Copyright © 2017 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Minorities' acculturation and social adjustment: The moderator role of meta‐perceptions of majority's acculturation attitudes

Two studies addressed the role of Black meta‐perception of acculturation attitudes on the relation between minority acculturation attitudes and their social adjustment (school achievement and perceived quality of intergroup relations). Participants in both studies were Black Lusophone adolescents living in Portugal. Study 1 (N = 140) indicated that participants' attitude regarding the host culture was positively correlated with their school achievement and to their evaluation of intergroup relations. It also indicated that participants' meta‐perception of majority attitude add to the explained variance of participants' social adjustment. Study 2 (N = 62) manipulated the perceived majority high/low support of immigrants' learning the host culture. The dependent variable (DV) was perceived quality of intergroup relations. Only in the low support condition were participants' attitudes towards the host culture positively related to perceived quality of Black–White relationships. These results suggest that perceived social context is central to understand the relationship between minority adolescents' acculturation attitudes and key dimensions of their adjustment to host societies.     

Parents,friends and immigrant youths' academic engagement: A mediation analysis

Parents and friends can help facilitate the academic engagement of newcomer immigrant youth during the early post-migration years. Using an accelerated longitudinal design and the integrative risk and resilience framework, we examined how parent home involvement and friendships were directly and indirectly associated with the development of newcomer immigrant youths' academic engagement. We used data from three waves (Years 3–5) of the Longitudinal Immigrant Student Adaptation study where a culturally diverse group of immigrant youth (N = 354, ages 10–17, M_timeinUS = 3.98 years, SD = 1.39) in the United States reported on their perceptions of parent home involvement (educational values and communication) and friendship (educational values and academic support) in Year 3 and on their academic engagement (behavioural and emotional) across 3 years. Findings showed high-stable behavioural and emotional engagement and direct positive associations between perceptions of parent home involvement and initial levels of behavioural and emotional engagement and between perceptions of friend educational values and initial levels of emotional engagement. Additionally, perceptions of parents' educational values indirectly contributed to initial levels of emotional engagement through positive associations with perceptions of friends' educational values. These findings can inform family–school partnerships and school-interventions targeting newcomer immigrant youths' engagement.     

Trait Self‐Esteem Moderates the Effect of Initiator Status on Emotional and Cognitive Responses to Romantic Relationship Dissolution

ABSTRACT We hypothesized that the effect of initiator status on post breakup distress would vary as a function of trait self‐esteem, such that individuals with low self‐esteem would experience more distress after being rejected by their partners, whereas, among individuals with high self‐esteem, initiator status would not predict distress. We used a prospective design in which university students (N=66) were assessed for emotional responses following the dissolution of their real‐life romantic relationships, as well as a laboratory design in which students (N=190) imagined breaking up with their partners. As predicted, participants with lower trait self‐esteem exhibited greater distress after experiencing or imagining a romantic rejection than after ending or imagining themselves ending their relationships. Conversely, distress experienced by those with high trait self‐esteem did not differ as a function of who ended the relationship. Implications for understanding self‐esteem processes and the effects of romantic rejection are discussed.     

The contemptuous separation: Facial expressions of emotion and breakups in young adulthood

The importance of studying specific and expressed emotions after a stressful life event is well known, yet few studies have moved beyond assessing self‐reported emotional responses to a romantic breakup. This study examined associations between computer‐recognized facial expressions and self‐reported breakup‐related distress among recently separated college‐aged young adults (N = 135; 37 men) on four visits across 9 weeks. Participants' facial expressions were coded using the Computer Expression Recognition Toolbox while participants spoke about their breakups. Of the seven expressed emotions studied, only Contempt showed a unique association with breakup‐related distress over time. At baseline, greater Contempt was associated with less breakup‐related distress; however, over time, greater Contempt was associated with greater breakup‐related distress.     

Sibling relationships and best friendships in young adulthood: Warmth,conflict, and well‐being

Although much work addresses the importance of siblings and friendships in separate investigations, few studies simultaneously examine both relationships. Young adults (N= 102, M age = 18.7) were surveyed about their friendships, their sibling relationships, and their psychological well‐being (assessed by self‐esteem and loneliness). Participants with harmonious (high warmth, low conflict) sibling relations and same‐gender friends had the highest well‐being. Participants with affect‐intense (high warmth, high conflict) sibling relationships had low well‐being. However, participants who had low‐involved (low warmth, low conflict) and affect‐intense same‐gender friendships did not differ in well‐being. When examining joint effects, having a harmonious same‐gender friendship compensated for having a low‐involved sibling relationship, but having harmonious sibling relations did not compensate for having low‐involved friendships. Overall, the results underscore the importance of positive and negative relationship properties and the joint effects of multiple relationships.     

Friendship and romance across the U.S. political divide: Hindrance or help for outgroup political attitudes?

Consistent with the intergroup contact literature, cross-political relationships (e.g., friendships or romantic relationships between different partisans) may help reduce inter-political group prejudice. Given that unfavorable attitudes based on the political group membership are particularly heightened at present in the United States, we explored whether having cross-political friendships (Study 1) or romantic relationships (Study 2) predict more positive interpersonal or intergroup attitudes among American Democrats and Republicans. In Study 1, using a social network measure (N = 301), where participants reported on their closest friends, cross-political (versus same-political) friendship was associated with less positive interpersonal attitudes when this relationship was unsatisfying. Having any (versus no) or more (versus less) cross-political group friendships was not associated with holding more positive intergroup attitudes. In Study 2, cross-political romantic relationships were examined (N = 392). Having a cross- (versus same-) political romantic relationship was associated with relatively less positive attitudes toward the political outgroup via lower empathy when relationship satisfaction was low. Study findings highlight the potential limitations of the beneficial effects of intergroup contact.