Psychological Theories of the Breakdown of Romantic Relationships

649 Words3 Pages
Discuss psychological theories of the breakdown of romantic relationships (24 marks) Breakdown is the failure of holding a romantic relationship together between the two partners. Duck put forward several reasons as to why relationships may breakdown. One of those reasons is ‘Lack of Skills’, for example the lack of interpersonal skills, such as communication; this may leave the relationship unsatisfying/unrewarding. A second reason to breakdown is ‘Lack of Stimulation’ this could be boredom or the feeling that the relationship isn’t progressing. The final reason is ‘Maintenance Difficulties’, this is when the relationship could be strained by practical difficulties, such as distance. Rollie and Duck put forward a model of relationship breakdown, which consisted of 6 stages. The first stage was ‘Breakdown’ this is dissatisfaction with your partner; if this is sufficiently great then it progresses onto the next stage. ‘Intrapsychic’, this is characterized by social withdrawal and the disatisfied partner focuses on their partners faults which can cause them to consider possible alternatives. This leads onto the ‘Dyadic Process’, this is where the partners talk about their problems and the causes of their dissatisfaction, however reconliation can take place at this point. If it doesn’t then it precedes onto the fourth stage ‘Social Processes’ this is when the breakup has been made public, and third parties such as friends and family get involved for support and advice. Through this alliances are created. The fifth stage is ‘Grave-Dressing’ here the relationship has come to an end, and an account of how it came to an end is made. During this stage stories of betrayal are usually shared, it is likely that different stories are offered to different listeners and the real version is usually kept to self. The last stage is ‘Resurrection’ here each partner prepares
Open Document