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    Relationship Norm Strength: Measurement Structure, Dyadic Interdependence, Correlates, Causes and Consequences

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    Issue Date
    2015-05-31
    Author
    Sakaluk, John Kitchener
    Publisher
    University of Kansas
    Format
    215 pages
    Type
    Dissertation
    Degree Level
    Ph.D.
    Discipline
    Psychology
    Rights
    Copyright held by the author.
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    Abstract
    The study of norms and close relationships are two pillars of social psychological scholarship, yet the two topics are rarely studied in tandem. When relationship norms have been the subject of empirical study, researchers have focused on evaluating the importance of their content for relational processes. In the present dissertation, I propose the strength of relationship norms as a topic worthy of empirical attention. Across five studies, including correlational, quasi-experimental, experimental, and dyadic designs, I evaluated the primary hypothesis that relationship norms would be stronger in relationships characterized by greater affiliative motivation, opertationalized both in terms of organically occurring relationship types, and ratings of relationship quality. Throughout the five studies, I also tested secondary hypotheses related to the association between relationship norm strength and perceived similarity, asset and resource sharing, and conflict between relationship partners, as well as the extent to which members of romantic couples abided by the norms of their relationship. In Study 1, participants (n = 100) perceived relationship types implying greater commitment (e.g., committed romantic relationships) as having stronger norms than those implying lesser commitment (e.g., casual sex relationships). In Study 2, I piloted a multidimensional measure of relationship norm strength and documented similar differences in norm strength and relationship quality among participants (n = 312) who were currently in the relationship types examined in Study 1. In Study 3, some aspects of relationship norm strength and relationship quality were positively associated for members of romantic dyads (ncouples = 25, nindividuals = 11). Individuals in a relationship with stronger norms generally reported complying with their relationship’s norms to a greater extent, though the opposite was sometimes true of their partner; individuals also exhibited a large amount of bias in appraising their partner’s level of norm compliance. In Study 4, participants currently in a romantic relationship (n = 286) primed to recall memories of high relationship quality reported feeling stronger norms in their romantic relationship, relative to those primed to recall moments of low relationship quality. Finally, in Study 5, participants currently in a romantic relationship (n = 239) primed to perceive their relationship norms as strong perceived their relationship as being higher quality than those in a control condition. These five studies provide initial promising support for the hypothesized role of relationship norm strength. I discuss their implications and the importance of continued investigations of relationship norm strength.
    URI
    http://hdl.handle.net/1808/19077
    Collections
    • Dissertations [4454]
    • Psychology Dissertations and Theses [459]

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    KU Libraries
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    785-864-8983

    KU Libraries
    1425 Jayhawk Blvd
    Lawrence, KS 66045
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    Contact KU ScholarWorks
    785-864-8983
    KU Libraries
    1425 Jayhawk Blvd
    Lawrence, KS 66045
    785-864-8983

    KU Libraries
    1425 Jayhawk Blvd
    Lawrence, KS 66045
    Image Credits
     

     

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