Commitment, pro-relationship behavior, and trust in close relationships.

TLDR

Commitment-inspired acts such as accommodation and sacrifice signal pro‑relationship motives, and when partners perceive these acts, they develop trust. The study tests an interdependence‑based model linking commitment, pro‑relationship behavior, and trust. The authors employ an interdependence framework to analyze the reciprocal relationships among commitment, pro‑relationship behavior, and trust. Two longitudinal studies confirm the model, demonstrating a mutual cyclical growth where dependence promotes commitment, which fosters pro‑relationship acts that enhance trust, which in turn encourages further dependence, and attachment style contributes little beyond interdependence factors.

Abstract

The present work advances and tests an interdependence-based model of the associations among commitment, pro-relationship behavior, and trust. Findings from two longitudinal studies revealed good support for model predictions. Commitment-inspired acts such as accommodation and willingness to sacrifice provide diagnostic information regarding a partner's pro-relationship motives. Individuals come to trust their partners when they perceive that their partners have enacted pro-relationship behaviors, departing from their direct self-interest for the good of the relationship. The results of mediation analyses are consistent with a model of mutual cyclical growth in which (a) dependence promotes strong commitment, (b) commitment promotes pro-relationship acts, (c) pro-relationship acts are perceived by the partner, (d) the perception of pro-relationship acts enhances the partner's trust, and (e) trust increases the partner's willingness to become dependent on the relationship. Auxiliary analyses revealed that self-reported attachment style does not account for substantial variance beyond the features of interdependence that form the basis for the present model.