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Growing Together Through Our Cultural Differences: Self-Expansion in Intercultural Romantic Relationships
Abstract
Intercultural romantic relationships are increasingly common and although the obstacles such couples face are well documented, the factors that facilitate their success are less studied. Although cultural differences may present challenges, they also offer opportunities for self-expansion—personal growth via new perspectives, knowledge, and identities. In three studies using cross-sectional, dyadic, longitudinal, and experimental methods ( N Total = 896), self-expansion was associated with relationship quality and identity outcomes (i.e., identity integration, cultural self-awareness). Self-expanding through a partner’s culture (i.e., cultural self-expansion) was uniquely related to identity outcomes, beyond self-expanding more generally ( relational self-expansion). Furthermore, actively sharing cultures and discussing their differences were linked to greater cultural and relational self-expansion, which in turn differentially predicted partners’ relationship quality and cultural identities. These studies provide a first look at the role of self-expansion in intercultural relationships, demonstrating that the way couples negotiate their cultures is linked to both relational and personal outcomes.
Since the development of film-induced tourism, scholars have increasingly shifted their attention to examining film-induced tourism from different perspectives. However, little research has been devoted to the underlying mechanisms by which audiences empathize with movie scenes. Current research believes that the lens language of movies is helpful for the communication between the movie and the audience. It not only helps the audience to shape the imagination of the movie scene, but also contributes to the construction of a virtual language landscape, and promotes the audience’s cognition of the movie scene. Bringing their emotions and self-expression into the story ultimately enhances the audience’s perception of where it was filmed. In exploring the framework of the transformation of empathy in lens language to landscape language, cultural differences are also proposed as the boundary conditions for the relationship between lens language and empathy. Structural equation modeling with PLS-SEM was employed to test the proposed hypotheses. The findings suggest that lens language positively predicts language landscape and empathy positively mediates the aforementioned relationship. Furthermore, the interaction term of cultural differences amplifies the relationship between lens language and empathy. Finally, we discuss theoretical and practical implications.
Most people are motivated to self-expand, collecting new attributes and experiences in a process that boosts well-being, but people with low self-concept clarity resist it. Perhaps, then, there is a tradeoff between self-expansion and self-concept clarity. Across a 2-week daily dairy, we found no evidence for such a tradeoff—self-expanding was not associated with lower self-concept clarity, either that day, the next day, or the period as a whole. In fact, self-expansion was associated with higher self-concept clarity, but especially for people with lower initial self-concept clarity. Although they were less likely to self-expand on a daily basis, when they did self-expand, they reported higher self-concept clarity and, in turn, greater satisfaction with life. These findings suggest that self-expansion in daily life does not come at the cost of a coherent self-concept and that despite their reluctance, people with lower self-concept clarity may experience associated benefits from self-expanding.
In many countries, individuals who have represented the majority group historically are decreasing in relative size and/or perceiving that they have diminished status and power compared with those self-identifying as immigrants or members of ethnic minority groups. These developments raise several salient and timely issues, including (a) how majority-group members’ cultural orientations change as a consequence of increasing intercultural contact due to shifting demographics; (b) what individual, group, cultural, and socio-structural processes shape these changes; and (c) what the implications of majority-group members’ acculturation are. Although research across several decades has examined the acculturation of individuals self-identifying as minority-group members, much less is known about how majority-group members acculturate in increasingly diverse societies. We present an overview of the state of the art in the emerging field of majority-group acculturation, identify what is known and needs to be known, and introduce a conceptual model to guide future research.
As globalization has become a defining issue for business and society, an increasing amount of research has examined how multicultural experiences affect a variety of psychological and organizational outcomes. We define "multicultural experiences" as exposure to or interactions with elements or members of a different culture(s). We then provide a comprehensive review of the literature and detail how multicultural experiences impact intrapersonal, interpersonal, and organizational outcomes, including creativity , psychological adjustment, intergroup bias, trust, morality, leadership effectiveness, and individual or firm performance, exploring key mechanisms and boundary conditions that have also emerged. We then present a new theoretical framework the "Structure-Appraisal Model of Multicultural Experiences"-that organizes the overall pattern of findings and provides a roadmap for future research. The structure part of our model proposes that deeper multicultural experiences produce integrative processes that transform intrapersonal cognition, whereas broader multicultural experiences activate comparative processes that influence interpersonal attitudes and behaviors. The appraisal part of our model suggests that these intrapersonal and interpersonal effects are only likely to occur when appraisals of one's multicultural experiences are positive rather than negative. We conclude by discussing practical implications for individuals and organizations, as well as future directions for researchers to consider exploring.
Spending time with a romantic partner by going on dates is important for promoting closeness in established relationships; however, not all date nights are created equally, and some people might be more adept at planning dates that promote closeness. Drawing from the self-expansion model and relationship goals literature, we predicted that people higher (vs. lower) in approach relationship goals would be more likely to plan dates that are more exciting and, in turn, experience more self-expansion from the date and increased closeness with the partner. In Study 1, people in intimate relationships planned a date to initiate with their partners and forecasted the expected level of self-expansion and closeness from engaging in the date. In Study 2, a similar design was employed, but we also followed up with participants 1 week later to ask about the experience of engaging in their planned dates (e.g., self-expansion, closeness from the date). Taken together, the results suggest that people with higher (vs. lower) approach relationship goals derive more closeness from their dates, in part, because of their greater aptitude for planning dates that are more exciting and promote self-expansion.
This article presents the 2021 JSI special issue on intergroup contact, which we designed to offer a fresh outlook on a rapidly expanding literature on the antecedents, dynamics, and consequences of interactions between members of opposing groups in society—or intergroup contact. We start by discussing the results of a bibliographic search of intergroup contact research between 1937 and 2021 and organizing our analysis around two distinct phases of this research, as they are demarcated in volume and quality by Pettigrew and Tropp's landmark meta‐analysis in 2006. We then turn our attention to an overview of the 12 review and commentary articles contributing to the special issue, which reflect advancements in themes, methodologies, and analytics of the last 15 years of research. We argue that this second generation of research has effectively addressed influential and legitimate critiques of the literature and, as a result, led to a more complex and nuanced understanding of intergroup contact that can now be readily harnessed by social cohesion practitioners and policy makers to increase the efficacy of contact‐based interventions in society. We conclude by calling on a third generation of research on intergroup contact that fully harnesses diversity of ideas, peoples, and minds and keeps in close check unproductive dynamics that stifle scientific progress, and pose a threat to healthy and safe research communities. Together with the 50 diverse contributors of this special issue, we commit to making the intergroup contact research community, like the topic of intergroup contact itself, diverse and inclusive.
Despite the growing prevalence of intercultural romantic relationships—in which partners identify with different racial, national or religious backgrounds—people in intercultural relationships still face marginalization and disapproval from others. Relationship marginalization sends a message to couples that they do not belong together, and partners may feel that their cultural identity and their relationship are disconnected. Two studies —one study of people in intercultural relationships and one of both members of intercultural couples— showed that when people perceived greater relationship marginalization, they were more likely to separate their couple identity from their cultural identity or believe they had to choose between these identities, and they were less likely to integrate these identities. Less integration and more separation between a person’s couple and cultural identities was associated with lower relationship quality for both partners. The findings suggest that marginalization can create challenges for the maintenance and quality of intercultural relationships.
People’s selves are created, altered, and maintained both by their personal experiences in the world, but also through their experiences in close relationships. Thus, the way that people see and define who they are can be shaped and changed due to the relationships in which they find themselves. Although many different types of relationships can impact people’s identities, romantic relationships, as one of the closest relational bonds that adults experience, appear to be especially powerful in shaping the self. This relationship-induced self-change can occur in the initial attraction phase of a relationship, during ongoing relationships, and when relationships end. The goal of the current chapter is to detail various impacts that close relationships, particularly romantic relationships, have on people’s identities during the early and ongoing phases of romantic relationships. The current chapter also seeks to highlight motivating antecedents and moderating factors of these impacts and to discuss remaining questions and directions for future research.
This research introduces the construct of couple identity clarity—the extent to which an individual, as one of two partners in a romantic relationship, believes that the two of them know who they are as a couple. Cross-sectional (Studies 1–2), experimental (Study 3), and longitudinal (Study 4) studies supported the hypothesis that couple identity clarity is associated with higher commitment. Moreover, higher couple identity clarity, although related to actual agreement between partners on their identity as a couple, predicted commitment above and beyond agreement (Study 2)—as well as predicted reduced likelihood of relationship dissolution over a 9-month period (Study 4). Exploratory analyses revealed that successful conflict resolution may enhance couple identity clarity, in turn predicting commitment (Study 4). These studies highlight the importance of people’s understanding of who they are as a couple and how this understanding shapes relationship persistence.
Participation in shared self-expanding activities benefits both relationships and the self. However, most studies use tasks that combine self-expansion and arousal within one activity, making it difficult to know what drives the benefits. We tested the distinct effects of self-expansion and arousal in four studies. In Studies 1 and 2, 35 married couples and 106 friend pairs completed experiments manipulating self-expansion and arousal. Self-expansion (and not arousal) predicted relationship and individual outcomes. In Studies 3 and 4, 200 married individuals and 202 individuals thinking of a close friend reported perceptions of self-expansion and arousal during activities. Simultaneous regressions showed self-expansion, controlling (or not controlling) for arousal, predicted relationship, and individual outcomes. Results suggest that self-expansion is central for deriving benefits of shared activities, while arousal does not seem to be necessary.
With the rise of globalization, culture mixing increasingly occurs not only between groups and individuals belonging to different cultures but also within individuals. Biculturals, or people who are part of two cultures, are a growing population that has been studied in recent years; yet, there is still much to learn about exactly how their unique experiences of negotiating their cultures affect the way they think and behave. Past research has at times relied on models of biculturalism that conceptualize biculturals’ characteristics and experiences as simply the sum of their cultures’ influences. Yet, the way biculturals negotiate their cultures may result in unique psychological and social products that go beyond the additive contributions of each culture, suggesting the need for a new transformative theory of biculturalism. In this theoretical contribution, our aims are threefold: to (a) establish the need for a transformative theory of biculturalism, (b) discuss how our new transformative theory unifies existing research on biculturals’ lived experiences, and (c) present novel hypotheses linking specific negotiation processes (i.e., hybridizing, integrating, and frame switching) to unique products within the basic psychological domains of self, motivation, and cognition.
Sixty years of research on intergroup contact demonstrates that positive interactions across group boundaries can improve intergroup attitudes and can contribute to forging tolerant, integrated, multicultural societies. However, to fully realize the benefits of growing diversity around the globe, individuals need to exploit opportunities for intergroup contact that are available to them. Yet, it is relatively unknown why people might deliberately engage in cross-group interactions and how individuals’ expectations and motives prepare them to develop positive interpersonal relationships with outgroup members. In this article, we begin to address these research gaps. We discuss the self-expansion model and present new evidence that is consistent with this model. Two studies, one correlational in a cross-cultural setting and the other experimental, show the value of high self-expansion expectancies and motivation in promoting interest in and producing more and higher quality interactions across group boundaries. We discuss implications of these findings for policy and intervention.
In this article, the editors address the topic of interethnic marriage within the United States. The editors begin by outlining five major objectives for the present edition (i.e., to discuss conceptual and methodological concerns regarding research on interethnic marriage; to examine interethnic marital relationship processes, especially through the lens of interdependence theory; to review attitudes toward interethnic marriage; to assess the clinical and policy implications for interethnic marriages; and to synthesize the contemporary scholarship on this still-pervasive topic), identifying those papers in which the respective sets of authors within the present edition address each of the objectives. Next, the editors review several previous studies dealing with intermarriage. Afterward, the editors provide an overview of interdependence theory, which they view as a general framework for studying interethnic marriage. Finally, the editors invite readers to join in exploring state-of-the-art theorizing and research on interethnic marriage, in this first-of-its-kind JSI edition on such a timely and important social issue.
The research investigating how one's multiple cultural identities are configured within the self has yet to account for existing cultural identity configurations aside from integration, and for identifying with more than 2 cultural groups at once. The current research addresses these issues by constructing the Multicultural Identity Integration Scale (MULTIIS) to examine 3 different multicultural identity configurations, and their relationship to well-being based on Amiot and colleagues' (2007) cognitive-developmental model of social identity integration (CDSMII).
Diverse samples of multicultural individuals completed the MULTIIS along with identity and well-being measures. (Study 1A: N = 407; 1B: N = 310; 2A = 338 and 2A = 254) Results: Reliability and confirmatory factorial analyses (Studies 1A and 2A) all supported the factorial structure of the MULTIIS. Regression analyses (Studies 1B and 2B) confirmed that the integration subscale of the MULTIIS positively predicted well-being, whereas compartmentalization negatively predicted well-being. Categorization was inconsistently related to well-being.
These findings support the CDSMII and the usefulness of the MULTIIS measure, and suggest that each identity configuration is uniquely related to well-being outcomes. (PsycINFO Database Record
(c) 2015 APA, all rights reserved).
People are generally motivated to increase the diversity of their self-concepts, within their relationships and outside of them. Self-expansion enhances both individual and relationship well-being; however, almost no research has investigated what circumstances attenuate people’s desire for self-expansion. The present research addressed this question by testing the central hypothesis that experiencing lower self-concept clarity would predict less interest in self-expansion. Across three studies, the present research
demonstrated that individuals primed with low self-concept clarity expressed less interest in self-expansion outside of romantic relationships (Studies 1–2) and were less likely to actually self-expand by incorporating attributes from a potential romantic partner into the self (Study 3). Despite the benefits of self-expansion, certain situations may reduce people’s desire to add content to the self.
People are generally motivated to increase the diversity of their self-concepts, within their relationships and outside of them. Self-expansion enhances both individual and relationship well-being; however, almost no research has investigated what circumstances attenuate people’s desire for self-expansion. The present research addressed this question by testing the central hypothesis that experiencing lower self-concept clarity would predict less interest in self-expansion. Across three studies, the present research demonstrated that individuals primed with low self-concept clarity expressed less interest in self-expansion outside of romantic relationships (Studies 1–2) and were less likely to actually self-expand by incorporating attributes from a potential romantic partner into the self (Study 3). Despite the benefits of self-expansion, certain situations may reduce people’s desire to add content to the self.
Self-expansion theory [e.g., Aron, E. N., & Aron, A. (1996). Love and expansion of the self: The state of the model. Personal Relationships, 3, 45–58] suggests that people are attracted to those who offer opportunities to enhance the self. Although there is extensive evidence that similarity predicts liking, self-expansion theorists suggest that self-expansion opportunities are greatest with dissimilar others. Using a social interaction experiment, we explored the associations among perceived self-expansion opportunities, actual and perceived similarity, and attraction in the context of initial interactions. In 15-min interactions, 73 unacquainted dyads either discussed their leisure interests, discussed their political beliefs, or simply “became acquainted.” The discussion topic had no effect on attraction or perceived self-expansion. Actual similarity, operationalized by the degree of difference in partners' self-reported leisure interests or political views, was generally unassociated with perceived self-expansion opportunities and attraction. Perceived (global) similarity, however, was positively associated with self-expansion opportunities and attraction. Finally, perceived self-expansion opportunities mediated the link between perceived similarity and attraction.
Accurately perceiving whether interaction partners feel understood is important for developing intimate relationships and maintaining smooth interpersonal exchanges. During interracial interactions, when are Whites and racial minorities likely to accurately perceive how understood cross-race partners feel? We propose that participant race, desire to affiliate, and racial salience moderate accuracy in interracial interactions. Examination of cross-race roommates (Study 1) and interracial interactions with strangers (Study 2) revealed that when race is salient, Whites higher in desire to affiliate with racial minorities failed to accurately perceive the extent to which racial minority partners felt understood. Thus, although the desire to affiliate may appear beneficial, it may interfere with Whites' ability to accurately perceive how understood racial minorities feel. By contrast, racial minorities higher in desire to affiliate with Whites accurately perceived how understood White partners felt. Furthermore, participants' overestimation of how well they understood partners correlated negatively with partners' reports of relationship quality. Collectively, these findings indicate that racial salience and desire to affiliate moderate accurate perceptions of cross-race partners-even in the context of sustained interracial relationships-yielding divergent outcomes for Whites and racial minorities. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2014 APA, all rights reserved).
This paper presents a systemic-constructivist approach to working therapeutically with couples. Therapeutic change is optimal when both the intrapersonal processes of each individual and their unique interpersonal system are synthesized. This approach targets partners' ways of knowing and experiencing themselves in the context of their relationship. The therapist endeavors to engage the aspect of personal identity which each partner derives through his or her participation in the relationship. Emphasis is placed upon (1) The mutual identity that emerges as a result of the couple's intersubjective, dialectical interplay; (2) each partner's ability to engage as participant–observers within their own relationship; and (3) the ability for the couple to utilize their conjoint reflexive faculty in the service of their own change. Change which arises from this combination of personal motivation and collective agency exhibits a self-generated life of its own predicated upon the couple's own expertise rather than that of an external agent.
Building upon existing measures, four new brief acculturation scales are presented, measuring sociocultural adaptation, psychological adaptation, perceived cultural distance, and acculturation orientation. Following good scale reliability in initial samples, the English scales were translated in to 9 different languages (Chinese, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Portuguese, Spanish, Thai and Turkish). The translated scales were administered to a large sample of sojourners (N = 1929), demonstrating good reliability, and adequate structural equivalence across languages. In line with existing theory, sociocultural and psychological adaptation were positively correlated, and showed a negative association with perceived cultural distance. General measures of well-being were correlated with adaptation and distance, with better adaptation relating to higher well-being, and more distance relating to lower well-being. Acculturation orientation towards the home and host culture were measured separately and a weak negative correlation was found between the two, supporting their independence. Arguing against dichotomization, these subscales were analysed as continuous variables. Regression analysis showed sojourners to be better adapted, if they were oriented more towards the host culture and less towards the home culture. These new scales are proposed as alternatives to existing measures.
The self-expansion model posits that individuals are motivated to broaden their sense of self by acquiring new identities, developing new perspectives, enhancing capabilities, and gaining resources. The self-expansion motivation is driven by individuals' desire to increase their potential self-efficacy and ability to accomplish goals. In this article, we discuss two main ways individuals self-expand – by forming relationships and including the other in the self and through engaging in novel activities that are challenging and/or interesting either on one's own or with a relationship partner. We provide an overview of recent research detailing the numerous interpersonal and intrapersonal benefits and implications of self-expansion. Additionally, we differentiate self-expansion from a series of potentially associated constructs.
The self-expansion model suggests that the acquisition of new identities, capabilities, perspectives, and resources primarily occurs in the context of romantic relationships and that self-expanding activities have numerous benefits for relationships. However, self-expansion can theoretically occur outside of a relational context, yet little is known about the benefits of self-expanding activities for individuals. Across six experimental studies, we examined: (1) whether nonrelational novel, exciting, and interesting activities produce self-expansion and (2) whether engaging in nonrelational self-expanding activities results in greater exerted effort. In Studies 1 and 2, individuals who engaged in novel, exciting, and interesting activities experienced greater self-expansion than those who engaged in control activities. In Studies 36, individuals who engaged in high self-expanding activities exerted more effort on cognitive and physical tasks than those who engaged in low self-expanding activities, and this effect was not due to depleted self-regulatory resources, altered mood, or changes in self-esteem (Studies 5 and 6).
The self-expansion model states that an expanded self-concept is associated with an increased sense of self-efficacy. We conducted four studies (three correlational, one experimental) to test this central tenet of the self-expansion model in a non-relational context. Results indicate that self-concept size (Studies 1 and 2) and subjective sense of self-concept (Study 3) were positively associated with greater self-efficacy. In Study 4, individuals who were randomly assigned to physically expand a representation of their self-concept reported greater self-efficacy at resolving potential problems than those who contracted a self-representation or left it unchanged. Taken together, these four studies provide the first empirical evidence that expanded self-concepts lead to greater self-efficacy.
The Contact Hypothesis has long been considered one of psychology’s most effective strategies for improving intergroup relations. In this article, we review the history of the development of the Contact Hypothesis, and then we examine recent developments in this area. Specifically, we consider the conditions that are required for successful contact to occur (e.g. cooperation), investigate basic psychological processes that may mediate the consequent reductions in bias (e.g. decreased intergroup anxiety, increased common group representations), and explore factors that can facilitate the generalization of the benefits of intergroup contact in terms of more positive attitudes toward the outgroup as a whole (e.g. increased group salience). We conclude by outlining the contents of the contributions to this Special Issue on Intergroup Contact, highlighting common themes, and identifying findings that suggest directions for future research.
People are being exposed to second cultures in growing numbers, yet the role played by second-culture exposure in shaping sociocognitive skills has received little theoretical attention. The authors address this gap by exploring the relationship between acculturation strategies and integrative complexity. Consistent with the acculturation complexity model, studies of both Asian American college students (Study 1) and Israelis working in the United States (Study 2) show that biculturals are more integratively complex across domains (e.g., culture, work) than either assimilated or separated individuals. Using priming manipulations to clarify the directional flow of causality between acculturation and integrative complexity, the authors also find that greater integrative complexity among biculturals is driven by acculturation pressures (Study 3). Finally, the authors discuss the adaptive implications of multiculturalism.
Using a mixed-method approach, this study investigates how individuals believe race impacts their interracial relationship. Two-hundred and three individuals representing diverse racial-gender compositions of relationships responded to a series of measures to assess their Racial Worldview—a collective of notions about racial/ethnic identity, intergroup relations, and recognition of racist hegemony—before indicating the ways in which race or racial issues affect their romantic partnership. Results revealed four distinct types of Racial Worldview through K-means cluster and four broad themes of influences on relationship communication and functioning. Cross-tabs analyses indicated that Racial Worldview and participants perceptions of the impact of race were related with statistically significant differences between those who acknowledge racism and valued group differences reaching different conclusions than those who do not. The results add to existing research by drawing attention to the heterogeneity of thought and understanding within interracial relationships. The promise of using Racial Worldview in future research is discussed.
Cultural appropriation has been described and discussed within academic and everyday discourse, but little research has examined its role in the psychological context of intergroup relations. We sought to examine whether minority and majority group members (i.e., Black and White Americans) would differentially judge instances of cultural exchange as cultural appropriation. Five experiments (3 were preregistered on OSF) using a variety of potential cases of cultural appropriation demonstrated that Black participants were more likely than White participants to view these incidents as appropriation when they involved White perpetrators appropriating Black culture (vs. scenarios of Black perpetrators appropriating White culture), an effect mediated by distinctiveness threat. Black (vs. White) participants were also more likely to perceive White actors who appropriate Black culture as harmful and as intentional. In Study 4, explicit manipulation of distinctiveness threat eliminated the participant race effect: Perceivers viewed White perpetrators as more appropriative than Black perpetrators. When actors were portrayed as using either an ingroup or outgroup cultural product (Study 5), participants perceived use of an outgroup cultural product as more appropriative. Studies 3-5 were preregistered on OSF. This research illuminates how group-based status interacts with and adds to perpetrator prototypically to influence perceptions of cultural appropriation, distinguishes perception of appropriation from perception of racism, and points to the importance of distinctiveness threat as a contributor to differential race-based perceptions. Implications of perceiving cultural appropriation for intergroup relations are discussed. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2020 APA, all rights reserved).
Self-expansion in intimate relationships (i.e., broadening one’s perspective through engaging in novel, exciting activities with a partner) has been associated with relationship benefits. The goal of this study was to propose a motivational model of self-expansion to understand what prompts people to engage in self-expanding activities in their relationship on a daily basis. We hypothesized that when people report stronger daily approach relationship goals (i.e., goals focused on pursuing growth, intimacy, and rewards), they would report a greater likelihood of engaging in novel, exciting activities that enhance self-expansion and ultimately promote greater satisfaction in romantic relationships. To test our model, we recruited 122 couples for a 3-week daily diary study. In support of our hypotheses, on days when people (or their partners) reported higher than their usual approach relationship goals, they reported higher relational self-expansion, which was due, in part, to a greater likelihood of engaging in novel, exciting activities with the partner. In turn, higher relational self-expansion was associated with higher daily relationship satisfaction. Our findings have implications for understanding what promotes relationship growth on a day-to-day basis and the outcomes of daily approach-oriented relationship goals.
Regular positive sexual interactions are one reason why relationships have health and well-being benefits, yet low sexual desire is among the most common sexual problems reported by women. One interpersonal factor that has been associated with greater sexual desire and satisfaction in community couples is self-expansion (i.e., expanding one’s sense of self through novel, exciting, and broadening activities with a partner). In the current study, we recruited 97 couples in which the woman was diagnosed with clinically low sexual desire to test how self-expansion was associated with both partners’ sexual and relationship well-being. When women with low desire reported higher self-expansion, they reported greater relationship and sexual satisfaction, higher desire, and couples were more affectionate. When their partners reported higher self-expansion, they felt more satisfied with their sex life and relationship (and so did the women), lower sexual distress and less relationship conflict, and couples were more affectionate. Our findings suggest that self-expansion is associated with greater relationship and sexual well-being for couples with low desire, as well as less sexual distress and relationship conflict. Theoretical and clinical implications are discussed.
In the early stages of romantic relationships, sexual desire is often intense, but over time, as partners get to know each other, desire tends to decline. Low sexual desire has negative implications for relationship satisfaction and maintenance. Self-expansion theory suggests that engaging in novel activities with a long-term romantic partner can reignite feelings of passion from the early stages of a relationship. Across 3 studies using dyadic, daily experience, longitudinal, and experimental methods, we find evidence for our central prediction that engaging in self-expanding activities with a partner is associated with higher sexual desire. In turn, we found that higher desire fueled by self-expansion is associated with greater relationship satisfaction. Self-expansion, through sexual desire, is also associated with an increased likelihood that couples will engage in sex, and when they do engage in sex, they feel more satisfied with their sexual experiences. We also demonstrate that the benefits of self-expansion for relationship satisfaction are sustained over time, and that the effects cannot be attributed solely to increases in positive affect, time spent interacting with the partner or closeness during the activity. Implications for self-expansion theory and sexual desire maintenance in relationships are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2018 APA, all rights reserved).
As the Internet, globalization, and widespread international travel increase the prevalence of multicultural experiences (MCEs), the impact of these experiences on psychological states and organizational outcomes increasingly attract researchers' interest. Enhanced creativity has been shown to be one of the positive impacts of MCE; however, current findings fall short of distinguishing different types of multicultural experiences towards the end of identifying which specific experiences enhance creativity. Rooted in socio-cultural theory, this research examines the influence of two types of MCE, multicultural interactions versus multicultural exposures, on creative thinking and the role of cognitive flexibility in this relationship. Results of two studies indicate that multicultural interactions rather than exposures are associated with enhanced creative thinking (Studies 1-2) and confirm cognitive flexibility as the mediating mechanism (Study 2). Implications for organizations and educational institutions are discussed.
Cultural self-awareness refers to the awareness of how culture has influenced the self. This research investigated how such awareness might be related to cultural identification and well-being. In Study 1, we developed a scale measure that differentiated individuals’ awareness of how culture has influenced them (cultural self-awareness) and how their own personality and personal experiences have influenced them (personal self-awareness). Factor analysis and item analysis showed a two-factor model with acceptable scale reliability. Study 2 showed that cultural self-awareness positively predicted well-being through higher cultural identification, whereas personal self-awareness positively predicted well-being through higher behavioral authenticity. Study 3 manipulated the valence of individuals’ cultural experience. The indirect effect of cultural self-awareness on well-being was stronger when cultural experience was positive (vs. negative). Study 4 provided a specific cultural context for the well-being measures and replicated the findings of Studies 2 and 3. Implications on the link between culture and self were discussed.
In honor of the 50th anniversary of Loving v. Virginia (1967), the landmark civil rights case that invalidated laws prohibiting interracial marriage in the United States, this review describes the field's past and future directions for studying interracial romantic relationships. We briefly present history, theories, and research about interracial and interethnic romantic relationships, and provide suggestions for future research. We also highlight the need for flexible racial and ethnic categories as demographics and distinctions shift in the United States by proposing the use of adaptable panethnic (a set of related ethnic groups that have been combined and collectively labeled) categories, rather than racial categories, or the use of more specific ethnic or nationality categories depending on a variety of factors. Finally, we discuss multiracial and multiethnic individuals in the research on romantic relationships, acknowledging that multiracial and multiethnic individuals are both the offspring of such unions and a rapidly growing demographic.
In this article, we test the hypothesis that individuals with higher levels of identity integration—or those who perceive their different social identities as more blended and harmonious—will exhibit greater interpersonal tolerance toward others holding dissimilar values and preferences. Three studies examined this hypothesis using bicultural identity integration (or perceived blendedness and harmony between multiple cultural identities) and generalized identity integration (or perceived blendedness and harmony between one’s social identities in general). We find that individuals who perceive higher levels of blendedness, but not harmony, between their social identities are more tolerant of dissimilar others, as demonstrated by making more positive trait inferences about them. We also find that experimentally increasing identity integration leads to more positive trait inferences. Our findings have theoretical and practical implications for managing conflict between individuals and groups.
Romantic relationships are situated within broader cultural and family contexts, and this may be particularly salient to those in intergroup relationships. This study examined variations in young adults’ experiences with intercultural romantic relationships by ethnicity and immigrant generation. A sample of ethnically diverse young adults (N = 628; Asian, Latino, and European background) reported on self and parent attitudes toward dating outside of one’s own culture, own current dating status, and disapproval and conflict with parents over current and past dating status. Analyses revealed three key findings. First, intercultural relationships were evenly distributed across ethnic and immigrant generation groups. Second, participants of Asian background perceived greater attitudinal discrepancies with their parents toward intercultural dating than did participants of Latino and European background and were more likely to report intercultural dating conflict with their parents than Latino participants. Third, first-generation and second-generation participants were more likely to report intercultural dating conflict with parents than third-generation participants. Altogether, the findings show the importance of (a) incorporating culture into the conceptualization of intergroup relationships, particularly for ethnic minority and recent immigrant groups, and (b) considering the family context of intercultural dating relationships. Implications for the study of intergroup romantic relationships are discussed.
In this concluding article, we discuss the research and ideas on interethnic marriage put forth by our colleagues in this issue of the Journal of Social Issues by framing them using interdependence theory and the investment model. We discuss the work in terms of rewards, costs, investments, and alternatives. Next, we discuss several areas of future research needed to better understand interethnic marriage. Finally, we summarize issues related to social policy. © 2015 The Society for the Psychological Study of Social Issues.
A large number of approaches have been proposed for estimating and testing the significance of indirect effects in mediation models. In this study, four sets of Monte Carlo simulations involving full latent variable structural equation models were run in order to contrast the effectiveness of the currently popular bias-corrected bootstrapping approach with the simple test of joint significance approach. The results from these simulations demonstrate that the test of joint significance had more power than bias-corrected bootstrapping and also yielded more reasonable Type I errors.
Rather than seeing outgroup members as targets of fear, conflict, or even tolerance, the self-expansion model proposes that outgroup members might be seen as attractive opportunities for self-growth. The current study utilizes an experimental manipulation to raise (or lower) self-expansion motivation prior to a positive interaction with a stranger from a different ethnic group. The results show that priming high self-expansion motivation leads to higher quality interactions, greater interpersonal closeness, greater feelings of self-growth, and higher feelings of self-efficacy. In addition, these outcomes show patterns of mediation consistent with the predictions of self-expansion theory. These findings point to a potentially valuable tool for improving the quality of cross-group contact experiences. More broadly, they focus attention on the genuinely positive functions that relationships with outgroup members can have for the self.
This study focused on how couples managed their interracial and intercultural differences. To understand their experiences, a qualitative grounded theory analysis was used (n = 17). Analysis revealed that couples experienced most issues as cultural issues; race only occurred during their interactions with "others." They appeared to organize their responses according to four relationship structures: Integrated, Singularly Assimilated, Coexisting, and Unresolved. Couples in each of these structures managed daily process through four sets of relationship strategies: (a) creating a "we," (b) framing differences, (c) emotional maintenance, and (d) positioning in relationship to familial and societal context. These findings are a step toward a strength-based and research-informed education and clinical interventions for this population. Video Abstract.
Inspired by recent advances in creative cognition research, the authors examined in the current research some creative benefits of multicultural experiences. Study 1 showed that European American undergraduates had better creative performance immediately after being exposed to American and Chinese cultures or to a hybrid culture formed by fusing American and Chinese cultures; this effect was also observed 5 to 7 days after the initial exposure. Studies 2 and 3 showed that exposure to multicultural experiences is positively related to the likelihood of engaging in some creativity-supporting processes—generation of unconventional ideas (Study 2) and receptiveness to ideas originated from foreign cultures (Study 3). Finally, in Studies 4 and 5, the authors found that need for cognitive closure (or the need for firm answers) and existential terror significantly attenuated the positive link between multicultural experiences and receptiveness to ideas originated from foreign cultures. The authors discussed these findings’ implications on multicultural learning and creativity.
Sample correlations converge to the population value with increasing sample size, but the estimates are often inaccurate in small samples. In this report we use Monte-Carlo simulations to determine the critical sample size from which on the magnitude of a correlation can be expected to be stable. The necessary sample size to achieve stable estimates for correlations depends on the effect size, the width of the corridor of stability (i.e., a corridor around the true value where deviations are tolerated), and the requested confidence that the trajectory does not leave this corridor any more. Results indicate that in typical scenarios the sample size should approach 250 for stable estimates.
Two studies provided evidence for the role of naïve realism in the failure of individuals to give adequate weight to peer input, and explored two strategies for reducing the impact of this inferential bias. Study 1 demonstrated that dyad members see their own estimates as more “objective” than those of their partners and that this difference in perceived objectivity predicts the degree of underweighting. Compelling participants to assess their own versus their partners’ objectivity prior to revising estimates decreased underweighting, an effect that was mediated by differences in perceived objectivity. Study 2 showed that the increase in accuracy that results from requiring dyad members to offer joint estimates via discussion is largely retained in subsequent individual estimates. Both studies showed that underweighting is greater when dyad members disagree on the issue about which they are making consensus estimates—a finding that further supports a “naïve realism” interpretation of the phenomenon. (150 words)
This book explores a single theme—that the emotions, cognitions, and behaviors of love can be understood in terms of a basic motivation to expand the self. It also provides a broad overview of the literature on interpersonal attraction and on the maintenance of close relationships—not only romantic relationships, but friendship, sibling, and parent- child relationships as well. The book's main purpose, however, is to stimulate thinking by offering a new approach to unifying this wealth of data, using the idea of self-expansion, and to illustrate this idea's theoretical and practical implications.
As for the book's authors, we are two psychologists—one social, one clinical; the intended readers are our colleagues in psychology, sociology, marriage and family counseling, communications, psychiatry, ethology, and other fields, who are researching and/or trying to facilitate loving relationships. We also hope that the book will be useful for students in graduate or advanced undergraduate courses studying close relationships. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2012 APA, all rights reserved)