CMN 120 Midterm: CMN 120 - Midterm 2 Reading Notes Study Guide
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Questions from readings
1. How is culture related to self-disclosure? (important findings)
- Americans disclose more information about themselves & make friends
easily, but do NOT develop highly intimate friendships
- Germans do NOT disclose much information about themselves, but DO
become MORE intimate with FEW ppl
- Hypothesis that Germans disclose more than Americans to a close friend of
same/opposite sex was not supported
2. How is personality related to self-disclosure? (important findings)
- No real conclusive findings to link self-disclosure and personality
- use of JSDQ as a factor in low correlations between disclosure & various
personality traits
- Possibility of positive correlation between extraversion (personality) &
self-disclosure, but still contradictory findings about this
- Highest personality-trait correlates involved peers as the receivers
→ we should focus more on our willingness to disclose & depend on who
the receiver is
3. What are the components of social exchange theory? Interdependence
theory? Equity theory?
Social Exchange Theory = costs & rewards of a relationship (different from
economic exchange)
- no explicit bargaining involved
- self interests & interdependence
- individuals are motivated to interact w/ others in ways that serve their
self-interests
- also, our best interests to cooperate with one another to maximize both
parties’ profits
- each person’s outcomes are influenced by the other’s efforts
Interdependence Theory = about the control of resources in a relationship
- individuals assess rewards of relationship through:
1) Comparison levels (CL) = what one believes one SHOULD be receiving
- standard an individual’s uses to judge how satisfactory/attractive a
relationship is
2) Alternative (CLalt) = what one believes one COULD be receiving
- lowest level of rewards deemed acceptable when considering possible
alternative relationships
- we may continue relationship because we believe that the relationship is better
than any alternative open to us; you believe you deserve better but don’t believe
you can do better
Equity Theory = we should consider fairness in the distributions of costs &
rewards
- partners should think/act that the rewards are distributed in accordance
with their efforts
- 3 types of inequity that can occur:
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