Is my partner committed to me or tempted by others?: Perceptions of the partner's devaluation of alternatives

Black, Alexandra E.

doi:10.1016/j.cresp.2022.100042

Cited by 3 publications

(4 citation statements)

References 49 publications

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“…The current studies suggest that a unique combination of perceived partner commitment and agreeableness may influence these decisions. Specifically, the current studies revealed that, contrary to previous literature [ 1 , 21 ], perceiving that a partner is highly committed may have drawbacks for some individuals. More specifically, high perceived partner commitment may induce more selfishness in partners who are less agreeable, but less selfishness in partners who are more agreeable.…”

Section: Discussioncontrasting

confidence: 99%

“…Previous work has shown that perceptions tend to guide behavior [see 73 ] and the current studies provide evidence that partner perceptions influence relational behavior. Although research has addressed several different types of perceptions in romantic relationships (e.g., responsiveness [ 71 ]; support [ 74 ]), the current research joins a growing body of work focusing on perceived partner commitment [ 20 , 21 , 39 , 75 ]. Importantly, many factors influence the development of such perceptions, such as attachment [ 76 ], depression [ 77 ], perceived similarity [ 78 ], and even one’s own relationship commitment [ 25 , 46 ].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Perceiving that a partner is committed to the relationship tends to benefit romantic relationships in numerous ways. For example, perceiving that a partner is committed to the relationship tends to assuage concerns that the partner is romantically interested in others [ 21 ] and thus increases trust [ 1 ] and reduces negative emotions (e.g., jealousy; [ 22 ]) and behaviors (e.g., confrontation; [ 23 ]). Further, people who believe their partners are highly committed tend to report greater relationship satisfaction [ 24 ], commitment [ 25 ], quality [ 26 ], and stability [ 20 ], compared to those who doubt their partners’ commitment.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Perceiving greater commitment increases selfishness among disagreeable people

Sizemore,

Baker

2024

PLoS ONE

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Perceiving that a partner is highly committed tends to benefit close relationships. However, there may be relational drawbacks to perceiving high commitment. In particular, given that high commitment may signal that a partner is unlikely to leave the relationship, perceiving that a partner is highly committed might lead people low in agreeableness to feel comfortable behaving more selfishly toward that partner. One correlational study consisting of a highly diverse sample of individuals (n = 307), one observational study of newlywed couples (n = 202), and one experiment with undergraduate couples (n = 252) examined whether the implications of perceived partner commitment for selfish behaviors depend on agreeableness. Results demonstrated that perceiving high commitment resulted in more selfish behavior among disagreeable participants (Studies 1–3), but less selfish behavior among agreeable participants (Studies 1 and 3). Together, these results suggest that signaling commitment to disagreeable partners may backfire in romantic relationships.

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Section: Discussioncontrasting

confidence: 99%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Perceiving greater commitment increases selfishness among disagreeable people

Sizemore,

Baker

2024

PLoS ONE

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“…The presence of online alternatives may therefore make perceived partner commitment more salient. Indeed, Black and Reis (2022) found that perceived partner commitment is positively associated with perceptions of the partner's devaluation of attractive alternatives. After identifying these behaviors, I sought to experimentally manipulate the partner engaging in these commitment-signaling online behaviors in response to a hypothetical online alternative threat in Study 2.…”

Section: Brief Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Responding to threatening online alternatives: Perceiving the partner’s commitment through their social media behaviors

Black

2023

Journal of Social and Personal Relationships

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Two studies examined how committed people perceived their partners’ social media behaviors and how the presence of these behaviors impacted feelings of relationship security and satisfaction. Study 1 identified the specific social media behaviors that signal commitment by a romantic partner. Study 2 then manipulated the identified partner social media behaviors to examine if buffering occurred for people with high levels of attachment insecurity. Study 2 found that when a person was led to believe their partner engaged in high commitment online behaviors, they reported greater felt relationship security and relationship satisfaction. Attachment avoidance, but not attachment anxiety, moderated the manipulation’s effect on relationship satisfaction. Perceiving that a partner signals high commitment when the threat of online alternatives is salient may be one specific route to mitigate attachment avoidance’s impact on relationship satisfaction.

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