When I think of you, I feel more confident about me: The relational self and self-confidence

Although much research has demonstrated the existence of relationship specific relational selves, the effects of those selves on feelings about the overall self-concept are unknown. The current research proposed that level of relational interdependent self-construal moderates the relationship between the activation of close relationship partners and self-confidence. The first study examined self-construal as a naturally occurring personality variable, whereas the second study manipulated self-construal. Both studies supported the hypothesis that those greater in relational interdependence experience greater self-confidence when close others are salient whereas those lower in relational interdependence experience lower self-confidence. The implications of the findings and linkages to past research are discussed.     

Individual differences that moderate the effectiveness of relational reasons for self-improvement

Two studies tested the hypotheses that relationally-autonomous reasons (RARs) for goals predict attainment, and that this relationship is stronger among highly relational and agreeable people than others. Study 1 (n = 134) assessed participants’ self-construal and Agreeableness, and their tendency to pursue subgoals for RARs, relationally-controlled reasons (RCRs), and personally-controlled reasons (PARs). One month later, they indicated the number of subgoals they had attained. RARs were positively correlated with attainment, and this relationship was stronger among highly relational and agreeable people than others. In Study 2 (n = 74), self-construal and Agreeableness were assessed then participants generated possible outcomes of 3 subgoals using a Goal Attainment Scale. They were then randomly assigned to a goal program that either emphasized RARs, RCRs, or PARs. One week later, participants indicated their level of attainment. Highly relational and agreeable people had higher levels of attainment than others in the program emphasizing RARs.     

The relational-interdependent self-construal, self-concept consistency, and well-being

Examination of the assumptions underlying consistency perspectives in social and personality psychology reveals that they are based on an independent, individualistic view of the self. If the self is constructed as relational or interdependent with others, consistency may be less important in social behavior and well-being. Using a variety of measures of well-being, the studies showed that there is a weaker relation between consistency and well-being for individuals with a highly relational self-construal than for those with a low relational self-construal. Study 3 examined the association between the self-construal, consistency, authenticity, and well-being. These findings reveal the importance of a cultural analysis of theories of the self, personality, and well-being for further theory development.     

Self-Construal and Forgiveness Revisited: Replication and Extension

Evidence suggests that people who have greater interdependent self-construal forgive others more often because they are motivated to forgive to maintain the relationship. Furthermore, such forgiveness might lead to greater emotional well-being. In this study, we examined the relationship between interdependent self-construal and (a) decisional forgiveness and (b) emotional well-being. We also tested models that included trait forgivingness and the motivation to forgive to maintain relationships. Results indicated that (a) trait forgivingness and relational motivations to forgive uniquely mediate the relationship between interdependent self-construal and decisional forgiveness and (b) trait forgivingness may be a pathway from interdependent self-construal to emotional well-being.     

Online/offline self-disclosure to offline friends and relational outcomes in a diary study: The moderating role of self-esteem and relational closeness

Previous work suggests that the experiences of online and offline self-disclosure are heterogeneous among individuals. Yet little work has been done to identify the moderating role of individual characteristics and pre-existing relationship characteristics on the diverse relational outcomes. The present study using a 7-day diary design examined whether individuals' self-esteem level and relational closeness would moderate the relationships between online and offline self-disclosure to offline friends and two relational outcomes, that is, relationship satisfaction and trust in friendships. The analyses on 686 diary responses from 98 participants revealed that offline self-disclosure generally predicted greater relationship satisfaction and trust in friendships, whereas the role of online self-disclosure was not statistically significant. More importantly, self-esteem moderated the pattern associated with offline self-disclosure but not that with online self-disclosure. Specifically, offline self-disclosure predicted greater benefits to people with lower self-esteem relative to people with higher self-esteem. Moreover, pre-existing relational closeness moderated the relationship between offline self-disclosure and trust in friendships such that casual friendships benefited more from offline self-disclosure than close friendships did. The present study highlights the importance of personal characteristics and relationship characteristics in understanding the heterogeneous relational influence of different communication modes.     

The association between working models of attachment and personality: Toward an integrative framework operationalizing global relational models

A theoretical framework is presented which outlines the association between relational models of romantic relationships (romantic attachment anxiety and avoidance) and the conceptually similar dual dimensions of autonomy and sociotropy identified in the literature on personality diatheses of depression. Two studies, along with a meta-analysis of previous research, lend support to the notion that autonomy and avoidance share a common element reflecting variation in the degree to which people seek out or avoid closeness with others, whereas sociotropy and anxiety share a common element reflecting variation in the degree to which people worry about or are content in their social relations. The measures differ in relational specificity, however, as attachment anxiety and avoidance assess models of close and romantic relationships, whereas sociotropy and autonomy reflect more abstracted representations that encompass broader categories of social relation. The proposed framework offers a variety of avenues for research operationalizing and elaborating upon the function of global relational models in the attachment system.     

Effects of preoperative roommate assignment on preoperative anxiety and recovery from coronary-bypass surgery

This study examined the effect of preoperative roommate assignment on the preoperative anxiety and postoperative recovery of 27 male coronary-bypass patients. Patients were assigned preoperatively to a roommate who was either similar or dissimilar in his surgical status (preoperative vs. postoperative, respectively) and either similar or dissimilar in his type of operation (cardiac vs. noncardiac, respectively). The results indicated that the similarity/dissimilarity of a roommate's surgical status exerted important effects. Specifically, patients who before their operations had a postoperative roommate were less anxious preoperatively, were more ambulatory postoperatively, and were released more quickly from the hospital than patients who before their operations had a preoperative roommate. In contrast, the similarity/dissimilarity of the roommate's type of operation exerted no significant effects either separately or in interaction with the similarity of the roommate's surgical status. Theoretical implications, possible mechanisms, and practical implications for hospital policy are discussed.     

Thinking about oneself and others: the relational-interdependent self-construal and social cognition

These studies focus on the relational-interdependent self-construal's association with implicit or indirect cognitive processes. In the relational-interdependent self-construal, the self is defined largely in terms of close relationships, resulting in variation in self-related processes. In Studies 1 and 2, the relational self-construal was associated with positive implicit evaluations of relational concepts and with tightly organized cognitive networks of relational terms. Studies 3 and 4 demonstrated that this self-construal was associated with memory for and implicit organization of relational information. In Studies 5 and 6, the relational self-construal was positively related to the degree to which participants described themselves and a friend similarly. The implications of the relational self-construal for theories of relationship cognition and for other self-related cognitive processes are discussed.     

Are Nonfatal Suicide Attempts Instrumental in Achieving Personal and Interpersonal Goals?

This study focused on the well-being of the survivors of suicide attempts and the well-being of their interpersonal relationships after the attempt. The data came from a sample of 392 college students from 10 Muslim majority countries who reported having attempted suicide in the last 4 years. Suicide was conceptualized as a goal-directed behavior embedded in a sociocultural context and motivated by personal or interpersonal goals. We tested a process that linked culturally shaped self-construal to the postsuicidal personal and interpersonal well-being. We posited that this process would operate through the attitudes towards suicide, motives for suicide, the strength of the intention to die. Our model indicated that the acceptability of suicide was positively associated with escape motives, and this association was even stronger for the individuals with interdependent self-construals. Escape motives were negatively associated with postsuicidal personal and interpersonal well-being, but communication motives were not associated with these outcomes. We also found evidence that having an interdependent self-construal might be beneficial for postsuicidal personal and interpersonal well-being. Our results further suggested that the postsuicidal personal and interpersonal well-being of highly interdependent individuals may depend on the interpretation of their act of suicide by their close others.     

Having the will,finding the ways,and wishes for the future: A model of relational hope and well-being

Hope is a ubiquitous experience in daily life and acts as a force to help individuals attain desired future outcomes. In the current paper, we review existing research on hope and its benefits. Building on this work, we propose a new model of hope in romantic relationships. Our model seeks to expand the study of hope, addressing limitations of past research by bringing hope into the interpersonal domain and adding a future-oriented perspective. More specifically, we argue that relational hope encompasses three facets, including relational agency, relational pathways, and relational aspirations, or what we call the wills, ways, and wishes people have in their relationship. We outline specific ways that these three facets may promote well-being in romantic relationships. First, we propose that relational agency—the motivation to achieve relational goals—fuels approach-motivated goals, which in turn promotes higher quality relationships. Additionally, we posit that relational pathways—the perception of sufficient strategies to pursue relational goals—enhance self-regulation to support effective communication and conflict management with a romantic partner. Finally, we propose that relational aspirations—the positive emotions felt in anticipation of future relationship outcomes—foster growth beliefs which in turn promote relationship maintenance and commitment over time. While our model posits that relational hope has many potential benefits for relationships, we also discuss key contexts in which hope may undermine relationships and well-being. Overall, our proposed model of relational hope offers a new area of insight into how hope may shape well-being in romantic relationships.     

大学生自我构念与主观幸福感的关系:自尊与关系和谐的中介效应

为了分析文化融合、社会变迁背景下大学生自我观的特点,及自我构念与自尊、关系和谐、主观幸福感之间的关系,采用了自我构念量表、自尊量表、关系和谐量表及主观幸福感量表对446名大学生进行调查.结果显示:(1)文化融合、社会变迁背景下,代表集体主义文化价值观的互依我在大学生自我观中仍占优势.大学生自我观可分为二元型、独立型、互依型和边缘型.本研究中,四种类型所占比例分别为32.5%、18.6%、18.0%、30.9%.(2)自我构念与主观幸福感显著正相关;不同自我观类型大学生在主观幸福感上差异显著,二元型个体主观幸福感水平最高,边缘型最低,独立型、互依型处于中间水平.(3)自尊在独立我与主观幸福感间起到完全中介作用;互依我一方面通过关系和谐间接影响主观幸福感,另一方面,通过关系和谐对自尊的促进作用影响主观幸福感.     

Relationship quality promotes the desire for closeness among distressed avoidantly attached individuals

Individuals who experience attachment avoidance tend to desire less closeness in their romantic relationships than others, especially when experiencing distress. However, emerging research suggests that avoidant individuals value social closeness and are more comfortable with it when they perceive that seeking closeness is welcomed. Thus, this research examined the relationship characteristics that might predict avoidant individuals seeking more closeness than they would otherwise. We investigated whether perceiving their relationship to be high quality would predict avoidant individuals desiring more closeness when distressed. We hypothesized that avoidant individuals who perceived their relationship to be high quality would desire greater closeness with their partners when distressed—counteracting their tendency to eschew relational closeness. A study of dating couples supported this hypothesis.     

Assimilation for affiliation and contrast for control: complementary self-construals

People have knowledge about relationships (i.e., relational schemas) that is based on their experiences. Because most people have experience with complementary behavior (interaction partners behaving similarly in terms of affiliation but oppositely in terms of control), they expect complementary behavior in their relationships. Like other beliefs about relationships, expectations of complementarity affect self-construal. The authors provide evidence for complementary self-construal; people assimilate to relevant relationship partners on the affiliation dimension and contrast on the control dimension. Consistent with the proposed role of relationship knowledge in these effects, complementary self-construal was moderated by the familiarity of the target, whether people focused on their relationship with or the appearance of the target, and whether the context was relevant for the interpersonal dimension.     

Relational Self-Construal and its Relationship to Academic Citizenship Behavior

Despite the abundance of research on personality traits and citizenship behavior, no study has examined the role of relational self-construal, which is a self-definition based on one’s close relationships. We hypothesized that relational self-construal would be positively related to academic citizenship behaviors, and that this association would remain significant while controlling for sex and agreeableness. In the study, 2,222 college undergraduates completed a self-report questionnaire measuring their relational self-construal, sex, personality, and academic citizenship attitudes. The results also confirmed the hypothesis that relational self-construal is positively related to some academic citizenship behaviors while controlling for sex and agreeableness. Specifically, relational self-construal was associated with consideration and civic virtue, but not with other citizenship behaviors.     

Willingness to Falsely Take Blame among Friends: Closeness,Reporting Wrongdoing,and Identity

This study examined people’s willingness to falsely take the blame for a friend’s offense. We sought to identify whether friendship closeness and individual differences would predict false blame-taking. Participants were randomly assigned to think of either a close or casual friend engaging in driver negligence and indicated their willingness to falsely take responsibility. Although self-construal was unrelated to willingness, oneness mediated the relationship between friendship closeness and blame-taking willingness. Negative attitudes about reporting wrongdoing predicted a greater willingness, and men were more willing to take the blame than women. Results may help those in the legal system to better identify false confessions.     

Relational closeness: Comparing undergraduate college students' geographically close and long‐distance friendships

Abstract As interpersonal relationships change with the advent of new technology, researchers need to reexamine their theoretical constructs ( R. G. Adams, 1998 ). This study uses survey methodology to examine college undergraduates from the United States. It explores the concept of relational closeness by comparing how geographically close and long‐distance friends define closeness in their relationships. It assesses prior methods of defining and measuring closeness in interpersonal relationships for the impact of physical distance between the friends. Differences illustrate factors that are important in understanding relational closeness in general and in long‐distance relationships in particular.     

Longitudinal associations between relational and sexual well-being in couples transitioning to parenthood

There is limited understanding of the dynamic between relational and sexual well-being as couples adjust to new parenthood, despite this being a vulnerable period for couples' relationships. This study was aimed at examining the bidirectional links between relationship quality and sexual well-being (i.e., sexual satisfaction, sexual distress) across the transition to parenthood. We assessed new parent couples (N = 257) across four time points (two prenatal) from mid-pregnancy through 6 months postpartum. Parallel dyadic latent growth curve modeling was employed to examine the associations between trajectories of perceived relationship quality, sexual satisfaction, and sexual distress. New parents' declines in relationship quality were associated with declines in own and partners' sexual satisfaction and with increases in own sexual distress. Mothers' prenatal relationship quality and sexual distress predicted subsequent changes in own sexual distress and fathers' relationship quality, respectively. Results indicate that changes to new parents' relational and sexual well-being mutually influence each other over time. Current results indicate that the impact of the transition on couples' relationships is partly determined by own and partners' prenatal factors, to which clinicians and researchers can attend to early on. Cross-domain links between relational and sexual well-being should be considered in research and clinical practice.     

Inferring the emotions of friends versus strangers: the role of culture and self-construal

Three studies examined cross-cultural differences in empathic accuracy (the ability to correctly infer another's emotional experience) within the context of different relationships. East-West cultural differences in self-construal were hypothesized to differentiate levels of empathic accuracy across relationship types. In contrast to the independent self prevalent among members of Western cultures, members of Eastern cultures generally view the self as interdependent with those with whom they have a relationship. Easterners, relative to Westerners, are more concerned with the thoughts or feelings of close others and less concerned with the thoughts or feelings of those with whom they have no relational link (i.e., strangers). Across three studies, the authors found that East Asians, compared with European Americans, made more accurate inferences regarding the emotions of close others (i.e., friends), but less accurate inferences regarding the emotions of strangers. Furthermore, individual differences in interdependent self-construal among East Asians predicted the degree of empathic accuracy.