Discuss Two Theories of Maintenance of Relationships

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Social Exchange theory states that all social behaviour is a series of exchanges from which individuals attempt to maximise rewards and minimise costs, i.e. make a profit. For relationships, rewards include being cared for and sex. Costs include wasted time and effort. If a relationship is to be maintained, rewards must outweigh the costs. We also develop a comparison level; this is a standard against which we judge the profitability our relationship, it is formed from our past relationships and our observations of other relationships. The relationship is perceived to be worthwhile if it is above the CL. We also develop a comparison level for alternatives whereby we weight up the potential profitability of entering a new relationship. Supporting evidence comes from Rusbult, he gave questionnaires concerning rewards, costs and CLA in relationships to college students over a 7 month period. They were also asked to note how committed they were and whether their relationship had ended. Found that pps weighed up rewards/costs and alternatives before ending the relationship. This supports the idea that profitability and alternatives are determining factors. Moghaddam suggests that the theory mainly applies to students in western cultures because they generally have short-term relationships due to their high mobility, short-term relationships do not involve long-term commitment so it makes sense to be concerned with give/take. This suggests the theory may not apply to long-term relationships and those within cultures concerned more with security than profit. Simpson provides research support for the CLA. He asked participants to rate members of the opposite sex in terms of attractiveness. He found that participants who were already in committed relationships tended to give lower scores than those not in a relationship. This suggests that people view
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