bims-chumac 2021-12-05 papers

Issue of 2021–12–05
four papers selected by
Thomas Krichel, Open Library Society

J Soc Psychol. 2021 Dec 01. 1-13

I hope my partner can make me change: expected relational self-changes and relational outcomes.

The Two-Dimensional Model of Relational Self-change (TDM) suggests four types of self-change that may be elicited by romantic relationships: self-expansion, self-adulteration, self-pruning, and self-contraction. Previous research has shown that these four types of relational self-change were associated with relational outcomes. Prior research has also shown that positive illusions and expectations in romantic relationships can lead to positive relational outcomes. The current study used a longitudinal design to investigate how the four types of expected relational self-change affect future relationship satisfaction and commitment. Results indicated that participants had higher expected self-changes than their actual self-changes after three months, but their expected self-changes and actual self-changes were correlated. At Time 1 of their relationship, participants' relationship satisfaction and commitment were related to their expected self-changes. However, controlling for Time 1 relationship satisfaction and commitment, expected self-changes predicted commitment, but not relationship satisfaction, three months later.

Keywords: Self; couple relationships; relationship; romance; self-concept

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/00224545.2021.2008853

J Sex Res. 2021 Dec 03. 1-9

Perceived Mate Scarcity Leads to Increased Willingness to Mate Poach.

Larissa McKelvie, Ashley Locke, Graham Albert, Mackenzie Minor, Megan MacKinnon, Carolyn Hodges-Simeon, Steven Arnocky.

Mate poaching, where an individual attempts to attract a pair-bonded individual, is a risky mating tactic. Yet, it is surprisingly common. Although many studies have investigated individual differences in mate poaching, few have examined potentially relevant ecological factors, such as mate availability. In this study, 254 unmated North American adults were primed with either perceived mate scarcity or abundance, and subsequently completed measures of fear of being single, intrasexual competitiveness, and attitudes toward mate poaching. Results from a sequential mediation model revealed that men and women primed with mate scarcity held a more positive attitude toward mate poaching relative to those primed with mate abundance, and that this link was mediated by an induced fear of being single and intrasexual competitiveness. Our results suggest that mate poaching is a facultative adaptation of human mating psychology driven by intrasexual competitiveness that is activated in response to environments of low mate availability. It highlights the need for researchers to consider ecological cues when studying individual variation in mate poaching behavior.

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/00224499.2021.2005762

Soc Media Soc. 2021 Jul 01. 7(3):

How Black Teen Girls Navigate Social Media to Form Romantic Relationships.

Veronica U Weser, Ijeoma Opara, Brandon E Sands, Claudia-Santi F Fernandes, Kimberly D Hieftje.

The purpose of this study was to explore the use of social media within the context of heterosexual Black teen girls' romantic partner selection processes. To better understand Black teen girls' experiences, five focus groups (N = 27; aged 14-18 years) were conducted over Zoom. An inductive thematic analysis revealed four major themes: (1) the use of different platforms to gather different types of information, (2) the rules of social media scouting, (3) detecting partner qualities through social media, and (4) exploring Black teen girls' experience with social media and dating. Participants in our study primarily used Instagram to understand a potential partner's true self, while Twitter was used to assess a potential partner's political leanings. Our participants shared numerous "rules" related to the partner-scouting process. Black teen girls in our study explained that photos index a potential partner's style and hygiene, while memes were used to gauge sense of humor compatibility. More specific to Black teen girls, across all focus groups, participants shared their experiences of racism and bias, such as being associated with Black stereotypes, cultural invalidation, and being accused of "acting White." Although teen girls of various racial and ethnic groups may use social media to vet romantic partners, findings reveal that Black teen girls navigate social media in a unique way, including being highly attuned to signs of bias. Our findings suggest that in the first few months of COVID-19 social distancing had little impact on our participant's practice of using social media to vet potential romantic partners.

Keywords: Black; online dating; qualitative methods; social media; teen

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/20563051211033823