The narrative identity approach and romantic relationships

Bühler, Janina Larissa; Dunlop, William L.

doi:10.1111/spc3.12447

Cited by 22 publications

(26 citation statements)

References 68 publications

(136 reference statements)

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“…Previous studies have also shown that other factors affecting long-term marital satisfaction include commitment (Guilbault & Philiphe 2017), sexual desire, longing for each other (Beaudoin et al, 2020), personality traits, the understanding of the relationships in marital life (Bühler & Dunlop 2019), support, love for the partner, embodying a great common goal in life (Gildersleeve 2015), and flexibility in life (Bachand & Carson 2001).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Long-term Marital Satisfaction: Couples’ Narratives of the Role of Mate Selection

Jamalnik

Falsafinejad

Koolaee

2020

JCCNC

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Background: Long-term marital satisfaction depends on various factors in couples’ lives. Shared interests, beliefs, and goals can guarantee couples’ long and satisfying relationships. However, mate selection is one of the primary requirements for establishing a marital relationship in both modern and traditional societies. Based on the narratives of couples, the present study aimed to explore the role of mate selection in marital satisfaction. Methods: This study employed a qualitative narrative research design. The participants were couples who lived together at least for 10 years, were satisfied with their married life, and had children. They were selected through the purposive sampling method from the family entertainment centers of health houses affiliated with Qom Municipality, in 2019. The data were generated using in-depth in-person interviews. After interviewing 13 couples, theoretical saturation was obtained. The data were recorded, transcribed, and analyzed manually using the textual analytic approach. Results: The analysis of the participants’ narratives showed that the couples believed that four main themes, including spouse personality traits, shared religious beliefs, shared socioeconomic positions, and mutual respect and understanding affected their marital satisfaction. Conclusion: The couples who were satisfied with their marriage believed that realistic and correct mate selection played a vital role in the survival and stability of their marital life. It is very important to pay attention to the role and conditions of mate selection and its impact on the stability of marriage. Results from this study help counselors, couples’ therapists, mental health professionals, psychiatric nurses, and midwifery consultants prepare couples for premarital programs.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Long-term Marital Satisfaction: Couples’ Narratives of the Role of Mate Selection

Jamalnik

Falsafinejad

Koolaee

2020

JCCNC

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“…That is, compatibility primarily emerges as a consequence of the narrative history and idioms that are created within a particular relationship that does not generalize to other relationships (Bell et al, 1987;Garcia-Rada et al, 2018;Harris et al, 2014;Rossignac-Milon & Higgins, 2018). This perspective generates the prediction that accounting for relationship effects will require that scholars tailor items in a way that incorporates the relationship's own narrative structure (Adler et al, 2017;Bühler & Dunlop, 2019;Sparks et al, 2020). For example, it may be the case that Lawrence feels uniquely positive about Issa because of the way they tease each other-and he would feel less positive if that dynamic changed-but that particular standard would not apply to his past or future relationships.…”

Section: Theoretical Implicationsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Predicting Romantic Interest during Early Relationship Development: A Preregistered Investigation using Machine Learning

Eastwick¹,

Joel²,

Molden³

et al. 2021

Preprint

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There are massive literatures on initial romantic attraction and established, “official” relationships. But there is a gap in our knowledge about early relationship development: the interstitial stretch of time in which people experience rising and falling romantic interest for partners who have the potential to—but often do not—become sexual or dating partners. In the current study, 208 single participants reported on 1,065 potential romantic partners across 7,179 data points over seven months. In stage 1 of the analyses, we used machine learning (specifically, Random Forests) to extract estimates of the extent to which different classes of predictors (e.g., individual differences vs. target-specific constructs) accounted for participants’ romantic interest in these potential partners (12% vs. 36%, respectively). Also, the machine learning analyses offered little support for perceiver × target moderation accounts of compatibility: the meta-theoretical perspective that some types of perceivers are likely to experience greater romantic interest for some types of targets. In stage 2, we used traditional multilevel-modeling approaches to depict growth-curve analyses for each predictor retained by the machine learning models; robust (positive) main effects emerged for many variables, including sociosexuality, gender, the potential partner’s positive attributes (e.g., attractive, exciting), attachment features (e.g., proximity seeking, separation distress), and perceived interest. We also directly tested (and found no support for) ideal partner preference-matching effects on romantic interest, which is one popular perceiver × target moderation account of compatibility. We close by discussing the need for new models and perspectives to explain how people assess romantic compatibility.

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“…Narrative identity (namely, the life story; McAdams, 1995) is an internal representation of an individuals' past, present, and presumed future. The narrative identity approach (Bühler & Dunlop, 2019) is predicated on the notion that the manner in which people perceive their pasts takes precedence over what "actually" happened, in any objective sense of the word. With this in mind, these storied representations are understood to be psychosocial constructions insofar as they draw from the important events of one's past, but are changed through reflection, interpretation, and evaluation.…”

Section: Narrative Ways Of Knowingmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…As we articulate below, for many, such sense‐making processes are decidedly story‐like or narrative in nature (Bruner, 1990). As such, a narrative identity approach (Bühler & Dunlop, 2019) stands to inform the phenomenological understanding of romantic infidelity, both from the perspective of victims and perpetrators.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…These understandings culminate in the construction of a life story, or narrative identity, which is a subjective representation of one's past, present, and anticipated future that provides the self with meaning and continuity (i.e., identity;McAdams, 1995;Pals, 2006aPals, , 2006b. As such, the narrative identity approach (Bühler & Dunlop, 2019) is able to illuminate the ways in which individuals story their experiences with infidelity as well as how features of these stories relate to the personality traits and psychological health of the narrators. In the present studies, we applied a narrative identity approach to the study of romantic infidelity in order to (a) identify the narrative themes in stories of infidelity and (b) assess the relations between these themes and relevant constructs including personality traits, forgiveness, empathy, and self-esteem.…”

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confidence: 99%

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Both sides of the story: Narratives of romantic infidelity

Wilkinson

Dunlop

2020

Personal Relationships

Self Cite

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We applied a narrative identity approach to the study of romantic infidelity. In Study 1, participants provided narratives of the moment they discovered their partners' infidelity. In Study 2, participants were prompted for narratives of their unfaithful actions. In both studies, measures of personality traits, forgiveness, empathy, and self-esteem were administered. Narratives were coded for themes of redemption (bad beginnings, positive endings) and exploration (engaging with the experience's emotional implications). After controlling for relevant covariates (e.g., story length), participants who formed redemptive stories of their partner's infidelity evinced higher levels of forgiveness and lower levels of empathy (Study 1), whereas participants who disclosed redemptive stories about their own infidelity demonstrated decreased forgiveness (Study 2). Across studies, exploratory narratives corresponded positively with conscientiousness.

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The narrative identity approach and romantic relationships

Cited by 22 publications

References 68 publications

Long-term Marital Satisfaction: Couples’ Narratives of the Role of Mate Selection

Long-term Marital Satisfaction: Couples’ Narratives of the Role of Mate Selection

Predicting Romantic Interest during Early Relationship Development: A Preregistered Investigation using Machine Learning

Both sides of the story: Narratives of romantic infidelity

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