Journal of Personality and Social Psychology · 1998 · 533 citations · 0 references
Behavioral SciencesIntimate RelationshipInterpersonal AttractionInterpersonal CommunicationSelf-fulfilling ProphecySocial PsychologyCouple PsychologyArtsInterpersonal RelationshipsSocial SciencesApplied Social PsychologyPersonal RelationshipRejection SensitivityRomantic PartnersRomantic RelationshipsPsychology
The study hypothesizes that rejection expectancies trigger behaviors that elicit partner rejection, creating a self‑fulfilling prophecy. The hypothesis was examined through a longitudinal field study with daily diaries and a laboratory study with behavioral observations of couples in conflict. In the field study, high rejection‑sensitive women were more likely to experience breakup and partner rejection, with conflict processes driving relationship erosion, while in the lab study, their negative behavior during conflict predicted partners’ rejecting responses.
The authors hypothesized a self-fulfilling prophecy wherein rejection expectancies lead people to behave in ways that elicit rejection from their dating partners. The hypothesis was tested in 2 studies of conflict in couples: (a) a longitudinal field study where couples provided daily-diary reports and (b) a lab study involving behavioral observations. Results from the field study showed that high rejection-sensitive (HRS) people's relationships were more likely to break up than those of low rejection-sensitive (LRS) people. Conflict processes that contribute to relationship erosion were revealed for HRS women but not for HRS men. Following naturally occurring relationship conflicts, HRS women's partners were more rejecting than were LRS women's partners. The lab study showed that HRS women's negative behavior during conflictual discussions helped explain their partners' more rejecting postconflict responses.