Psych 313 Relationship Science Class 11 Diversity PDF

Psych 313 Relationship Science CLASS 11 DIVERSITY  Today’s Agenda I. Diversity in Research Samples II. Views on Relationships III. Entering & Leaving Relationships IV. Stressors V. Strengths I. Diversity in Research Samples  Diversity in Research...

Psych 313 Relationship Science CLASS 11 DIVERSITY  Today’s Agenda I. Diversity in Research Samples II. Views on Relationships III. Entering & Leaving Relationships IV. Stressors V. Strengths I. Diversity in Research Samples  Diversity in Research Samples In general, psychology research samples tend to predominantly come from WEIRD societies: societies that are Western, Educated, Industrialized, Rich, and Democratic White, wealthy, educated people are represented more than are other demographics Samples in the subfield of relationship science aren’t too different (McGorray et al., 2023) An assessment of 1,762 studies published between 1996-2000 and 2016-2020: mostly White, heterosexual women from the U.S.  Sexual & Gender Minorities 100 96.2 100 representation 90 90 80 80 Median % 70 70 60 60 60 50 50 40 40 40 30 30 20 20 10 0 0 10 0.02 0 0 en ry n en l l ua ua ia na M om sb ex ex bi os is le W B on er or et N ay H G 1.9% of studies reported inclusion of any trans participants  Racial Representation (U.S. Studies) 100 90 80 76.2 70 Median % 60 50 40 30 20 10 7 6.3 6 0.8 0 0 Black AAPI White Latinx Native Middle American Eastern  N Su or th b- er Sa Percent n ha A 100 0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90 ra fri n ca A C & fri W ca 0 en tr es Ea al te st an rn er d As n So ia 6 La an ut tin d he So rn A u A m th er - E si a 0.4 ic as a te an rn d As th ia e 2.4 C ar ib be an 0.6 O ce an Un ia 2.9 i te d Eu St ro at es pe 12.5 Geographic of Am er Representation ic a 62.2 M C ul an tip ad l a 8.5 e co un tri es 4.6  Diversity in Research Samples What are we missing when we fail to use diverse samples? How universal our findings are—who do our findings generalize to? What unique relationship experiences we might be overlooking Important theoretical and empirical questions that might not occur to us when studying White, wealthy, heterosexual college students in the U.S.  Diversity in Research Samples From here on out… Focusing on culture, sexual orientation, gender identity, race, and social class How do relationship experiences differ across these groups? How are they similar? Unique questions that arise when studying these contexts Just scratching the surface! II. Views on Relationships  Views on Relationships Approaches to relationships can vary by factors such as culture and race/ethnicity One example: familism An emphasis on interdependent family relationships that are warm close, supportive and prioritize the relationship before the self Higher among Latine folks than other groups (Campos et al. 2016) b = -.22** b = -.30*** Attachment Partner Familism avoidance closeness  Views on Relationships Social class also shapes views on relationships Social class: differences in resources (income, education, occupation) and psychological experience of that difference Higher-SES: Expressive independence A focus on unique, self-expressive, individual self Choices are abundant Lower-SES: Hard interdependence A self that is responsive and oriented to other people But also tough and self-protective Adaptive in the face of an uncertain and uncontrollable world  Views on Relationships The Vignette Study (Carey and Marcus, 2019) “Steven has an uncle who has become increasingly hot-headed at recent family events. He tends to drink too much and has clashed with Steven on several occasions. A year ago, Steven got engaged and as his wedding day comes closer, he is unsure that he wants his uncle to come to the event. What should he do?” Participants provided advice  Views on Relationships Lower-SES Participant: Family is family...unfortunately he has to invite his uncle but it would be good if he could have a conversation about his concerns with him. Steven certainly doesn't want his uncle ruining the event; but if he doesn't invite him there could be bad blood. Higher-SES Participant: He should not invite his uncle. People aren't important just because they're family. Move on.  Views on Relationships Advice: Break Off Relationship 7 Suggestions to Break Off 6.5 Relationships 6 Working Class 5.5 Middle Class 5 4.5 4 III. Entering & Leaving Relationships  Entering Relationships Relationship initiation Mixed-Sex Couples Same-Sex Couples  Entering Relationships In 2017, the most common way that people met their spouses is online—for both mixed-sex and same-sex couples But meeting online became the most common way couples met earlier for same-sex couples, and same-sex couples meet online at higher rates Why? One possibility: Thin dating markets (fewer available partners of interest)  Entering Relationships Bias is pervasive in the dating world  Bias in relationships Bias is pervasive in the dating world With respect to race With respect to sexual orientation Gay and straight people tend to prefer to date gay and straight people rather than bisexual people, respectively (Ess et al., 2022) With respect to transgender status (Blair & Hoskin, 2019) Bias is often intersectional (Thai et al., 2019) But extensive biases are not present in every group E.g., interracial dating differs by political ID  Leaving Relationships What happens when couples break up? LGBTQ+ people have a greater number of “postdissolution friendships”—friendships with people they used to date LGBTQ+ people are also more likely to maintain friendships with their exes because they want to maintain feelings of connectedness and security Griffith et al., 2017 IV. Stressors  Stressors How does discrimination affect same-sex relationships? Discrimination and harassment that same-sex couples encounter can add stress to a relationship People experience worse relationship quality when… They feel motivated to conceal their queer identity (including their relationships) (Pepping et al. 2019)  Stressors How does discrimination affect same-sex relationships? Discrimination and harassment that same-sex couples encounter can add stress to a relationship People experience worse relationship quality when… They feel motivated to conceal their queer identity (including their relationships) (Pepping et al. 2019) They feel that their relationship is not supported by their social network (Blair & Holmberg, 2008) People experience better relationship quality when… They feel positively about their queer identities  Stressors How does racial discrimination affect relationships? Findings are mixed Some studies: experiencing discrimination associated with more support given to partner But other studies have found racial discrimination associated with reduced relationship quality And people are also affected by their partner’s experience of discrimination – vicarious discrimination predicts relationship strain (Wofford et al., 2019)  Stressors Central tension in relationshipsà connection or self-protection Self-protection especially likely when people are vigilant to risk Relationships are riskier when life is precarious People in lower-SES contexts may need to self- protect more, especially when feeling vulnerable  Stressors People in lower-SES contexts are more self- protective Self-protection, in turn, predicts lower relationship satisfaction 1.5 Lower-SES Higher-SES Self-Protection in 1 Relationship 0.5 0 -0.5 -1 Low High Relationship Vulnerability V. Strengths  Strengths The stressors that come from being in a lower-SES context may lead to resilient couple identities Participant quote: “We see through the struggles that I’d like to think we come out as survivors, and tough, to endure the kind of things we did. I think we’ve strengthened as individuals and as a couple.” The Couple Identity Study: “Please think about who you and your partner are as a couple and write 10 answers to the question “who are we” in the spaces provided”  Strengths Study 1 40 Study 2 40 35 35 30 Frequency (%) 30 25 Frequency (%) 25 20 20 15 15 10 10 5 5 0 0 Resilience (Coded) Resilience (Coded) Lower-SES Higher-SES Lower-SES Higher-SES  Strengths Intercultural relationships: Relationships in which partners identify with different cultures Cultural sharing within intercultural relationships offer opportunities for self- expansion The Cultural Self-Expansion Study (West et al., 2022) : Partners in intercultural relationships who reported greater cultural sharing also reported greater self-expansion, which is associated with relationship quality  Strengths In general, same-sex and mixed-sex couples are pretty similar with regards to relationship quality And for same-sex and mixed-sex couples, the same things tend to predict quality relationships: viewing one’s partner positively, effectively navigating conflict, etc. 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 Satisfaction Commitment Same-sex Mixed-sex  Strengths The Adoptive Parents Study (Goldberg et al., 2012) Participants in same-sex couples split up childcare and time-consuming household chores more equally  Strengths Thinking back to the investment model…  Strengths Satisfaction + Alternatives – + Commitment Longevity Investments +  Strengths Thinking back to the investment model… If we’re low in one of the investment model “ingredients,” can we compensate with another? The Marginalized Relationships Study: (Lehmiller & Agnew, 2006) Participants in relationships that are negatively judged or devalued by society (e.g., same-sex, interracial, and age-gap relationships) reported on investments and commitments  Strengths 9 * 7.64 8.01 8 7 6 5.68 * 6.02 5 * 4.09 4 3.67 3 2 1 Investments Alternatives Commitment Marginalized Relationship Non-Marginalized Relationship People in marginalized relationships had fewer investments but were more committed—perhaps because they perceived lower-quality alternatives  Strengths Our relationship partners can affirm aspects of our identities that society disregards or oppresses Microaffirmations: small, interpersonal interactions that communicate validation for an identity The Microaffirmation Study (Pulice-Farrow et al., 2019) Trans participants reflected on what positive, affirming behaviors their partners engaged in  Strengths Using affirming language [My partner was] the first person I discussed my pronoun change with and then once I had made my decision she used them from there on while being supportive and accepting as I socially transitioned Showing support [M]y partner has been very clear that she doesn’t need me to surgically transition to validate her love, support, and attraction to me; she fully supports my need to surgically transition, however, and has been an incredible support throughout the process Helping to process She’s helped me so much with finding useful local resources, helping me come to decisions and processing my feelings, and being someone that can relate to our shared experiences as trans women. With her I feel like I might survive, like I’m worthwhile Fin.