The interpersonal process model of demand/withdraw behavior.

Abstract

The demand/withdraw interaction pattern is a destructive cycle of relationship communication behavior that is associated with negative individual and relationship outcomes. Demand/withdraw behavior is thought to be strongly linked to partners' emotional reactions, but current theories are inconsistent with empirical findings. The current study proposes the interpersonal process model of demand/withdraw behavior, which includes linkages between each partners' emotional reactions and the interpersonal behavior of demanding and withdrawing. Data come from problem solving discussions of 55 German couples with observationally coded demand/withdraw behavior and fundamental frequency (f₀) to measure vocally encoded emotional arousal. Actor-partner interdependence models (Kenny, Kashy, & Cook, 2006) were used to examine associations among demand/withdraw behavior and f₀ in the overall discussion and 5-min segments. Significant cross-partner associations emerged for demanding and withdrawing behavior across the whole conversation as well as within 5-min segments, and these associations are partially accounted for by each individual's f₀. When behaviorally coded demanders expressed more vocal arousal, they demanded more and withdrew less while their partners withdrew more. In contrast, when behaviorally coded withdrawers expressed more vocal arousal, their partners demanded less and withdrew more. Findings demonstrate that demand/withdraw behavior varies between couples (i.e., some couples engage in a stronger demand/withdraw cycle than others) and between segments (i.e., when 1 partner increases demanding, the other increases withdrawing). Findings support key elements of the interpersonal process model, showing intra- and interpersonal pathways linking demand/withdraw behavior and emotion and demonstrate the importance of partners' behavioral roles in these linkages.

When the “U” is not Inverted: Trajectories of Expressed Emotional Arousal Predict Relationship Satisfaction

“…As emotional arousal increases, vocal folds open and close more rapidly, and f 0 increases (measured in Hertz (Hz)). F 0 as a measure of emotional arousal has also been shown to be meaningful in a range of studies on couples (e.g., Baucom et al, 2011;Baucom, Dickenson et al, 2015;Baucom, Sheng et al, 2015;Fischer et al, 2015Fischer et al, , 2017Weusthoff et al, 2013). F 0 as a measure of emotional arousal has also been shown to be meaningful in a range of studies on couples (e.g., Baucom et al, 2011;Baucom, Dickenson et al, 2015;Baucom, Sheng et al, 2015;Fischer et al, 2015Fischer et al, , 2017Weusthoff et al, 2013).…”

“…Fundamental frequency (perceived as pitch) has been shown to be meaningful in a variety of couple interaction studies focused either on average levels of arousal (e.g., Fischer et al, 2015;Weusthoff, Baucom, & Hahlweg, 2013) or within-conversation interpersonal processes (e.g., Baucom, Dickenson et al, 2015;Baucom, Sheng et al, 2015;Fischer et al, 2017). It is also well suited to examine continuous shifts throughout a conversation.…”

Disorder-specific patterns of emotion coregulation in couples: Comparing obsessive compulsive disorder and anorexia nervosa.

“…From a methodological perspective, this study adds to a growing literature on vocally encoded emotional arousal in couples, although prior studies were not focused on couples in which one partner has a psychological disorder (Baucom, Dickenson, et al, 2015; Baucom, Weusthoff, et al, 2012; Fischer, Baucom, et al, 2015; Weusthoff et al, 2013). However, these studies collectively suggest that vocally encoded arousal plays an important role for our understanding of couple interactions in a variety of contexts.…”

“…Broadly, several studies demonstrated that overall levels of f 0 (Baucom et al, 2011; Baucom, Weusthoff, Atkins, & Hahlweg, 2012; Fischer, Baucom, et al, 2015) as well as within-conversation changes (Baucom, Dickenson, et al, 2015; Baucom, Sheng, et al, 2015) are associated with cross-sectional and longitudinal relationship outcomes. Similarly, Weeks and colleagues (Weeks, Heimberg, & Heuer, 2011; Weeks et al, 2012) demonstrated meaningful associations between f 0 during social threat tasks and symptom severity/diagnosis of social anxiety disorder.…”

The Promise and the Challenge of Technology-Facilitated Methods for Assessing Behavioral and Cognitive Markers of Risk for Suicide among U.S. Army National Guard Personnel

“…This work has resulted in numerous algorithms for automatically measuring well-established behavioral markers of relationship distress during couple conversations about relationship problems [47] as well as discovery of behavioral and emotional processes associated with acute emotional distress during couple conversations and during soldier-therapist interactions [48,49]. For example, one particularly important indicator of acute distress is the degree to which one person is emotionally responsive to the other.…”