Self-disclosure and liking: A meta-analytic review.

Abstract

Self-disclosure plays a central role in the development and maintenance of relationships. One way that researchers have explored these processes is by studying the links between self-disclosure and liking. Using meta-analytic procedures, the present work sought to clarify and review this literature by evaluating the evidence for 3 distinct disclosure-liking effects. Significant disclosure-liking relations were found for each effect: (a) People who engage in intimate disclosures tend to be liked more than people who disclose at lower levels, (b) people disclose more to those whom they initially like, and (c) people like others as a result of having disclosed to them. In addition, the relation between disclosure and liking was moderated by a number of variables, including study paradigm, type of disclosure, and gender of the discloser. Taken together, these results suggest that various disclosure-liking effects can be integrated and viewed as operating together within a dynamic interpersonal system. Implications for theory development are discussed, and avenues for future research are suggested.

Subtle Discrimination in the Workplace: A Vicious Cycle

“…Therefore, as we learn more about a person, we tend to rely more on that new information and less on stereotypes. Similarly, disclosure research has shown that sharing personal information with others can foster intimacy, liking, and trust (Collins & Miller, 1994;Manne et al, 2004;Turner, Hewstone, & Voci, 2007). Therefore, because relationships are constantly changing over time as people have new experiences with and learn more about each other, examining the extent to which an individual perceives, witnesses, or engages in subtle discrimination with a particular person at a single snapshot in time is insufficient to fully understanding the experience and consequences of subtle discrimination within a particular relationship.…”

Direct and extended intergenerational contact and young people's attitudes towards older adults

“…Self‐disclosure is integral to the formation and maintenance of positive interpersonal relationships (Altman & Taylor, 1973; Reis & Shaver, 1988). Receiving intimate disclosure increases interpersonal trust and liking of the discloser (Collins & Miller, 1994) and is likely to be reciprocated, leading to mutual interpersonal attraction (Laurenceau, Barrett, & Rovine, 2005). …”

Living Together Apart: Perceived Concealment as a Signal of Exclusion in Marital Relationships

“…We suggest that this association rests at least in part on the experience of perceived partner exclusion, or the perception that one is separated from and excluded by one's partner. Because concealment is a social process, we propose that it signals avoidance, separation, and rejection; that is, a partner who is perceived to conceal information is assumed to distance himself or herself from the person and to exclude the person, whereas a partner who is perceived to be open and not conceal information is assumed to be close and intimate and to like the person (e.g., Collins & Miller, 1994;Finkenauer, Engels, Branje, & Meeus, 2004). The perception of concealment conveys separation, distance, and exclusion, whereas the perception of disclosure conveys closeness, intimacy, and sharing.…”