Nov. 8, 2025

PSY 101      Class 32 • Social II: Interpersonal Attraction & Attitudes (Outline)

Interpersonal Attraction: Liking & Loving

Interpersonal Attraction = Positive feelings toward another person

Key Factors in Attraction

1. Physical Attractiveness

• Matching hypothesis

2. Similarity

• Do opposites attract? Not really

3. Reciprocity

4. Other Factors

• Proximity and physical closeness

• Communication style

• Behavioral displays: standing/sitting closer, talking, eye gaze, smiling, mimicry

Perspectives on the Mystery of Love

Elaine Hatfield (U Hawaii)

Ellen Berscheid (U Minnesota)

Types: Passionate & Companionate Passionate Love  Companionate Love

Love and Attachment

Cindy Hazan (Cornell)

Phil Shaver (UC Davis)

Adult Attachment Styles Youtube Video (4'19") Secure Avoidant Anxious (-Ambivalent)

Culture and Close Relationships

• the emphasis on passionate love in individualist Western culture is not universally found
• arranged marriages in collectivist cultures are generally as successful as romance-based marriages
  

Internet and Close Relationships

       

• Over the last 25 years, the growth of online relationship sites has massively expanded
• Online dating is the most common way US couples meet (52% of never-married Americans have tried online dating)
• About 1/3 of marriages in the US involve couples who met via the Internet
  
• Facebook: need to belong and to present ourselves positively ("impression management")
• Online Dating/Matching Sites use "matching algorithms" to pair couples
  
• Positive experiences tend to be reported for online dating sites. Maybe the algorithms work? Maybe there is a placebo effect?
• Some reports of negative outcomes: lying, financial exploitation, unwanted sexual aggression online
• Couples meeting online rather than in person may experience a somewhat lower level of relationship satisfaction overall & lower intensity of experienced love.
  

Attraction from an Evolutionary Perspective

• Facial Symmetry

• Waist-to-Hip Ratio of 0.70

• Men: youthfulness & physical beauty in female

• Women: ambition, social status, financial potential in male
  

Attitudes: Making Social Judgments

Attitudes = positive or negative evaluations of objects of thought

• People (Trump, , Biden, Angelina Jolie), institutions (Le Moyne, the Catholic Church, the US Congress), groups (women, conservatives, Boy Scouts), political and social issues (gun control, tax cuts, health care reform, wearing masks).

Components & Dimensions of Attitudes

1. Cognitive: Beliefs

2. Affective: Feelings & emotions

3. Behavioral: Predisposition to act

	Positive Attitude (Pro)	Negative Attitude (Anti)
Cognitive
Affective
Behavioral

Changing Attitudes: Factors in Persuasion

Source	Message	Channel	Receiver
High Credibility Expertise Trustworthiness Likability Attractiveness Similarity to ourselves	Logical vs. Emotional Balance (1 vs. 2 sided): 2-sided often better Repetition = "mere exposure effect" Fear does work	TV or Radio Personal Computer (Internet!) Print	Personality Expectations Knowledge Strength of Pre-existing Attitude

Theories of Attitude Formation & Change

1. Learning Theory

• Classical Conditioning
• Operant Conditioning
• Observational Learning

2. Dissonance Theory (Leon Festinger)

    

• Cognitive Dissonance: Two beliefs which directly contradict each other
• Effort Justification: We tend to change our attitude in a positive direction if we have put a lot of work into the object of the attitude
  

3. Elaboration Likelihood Model (Richard Petty & John Cacioppo)

• Central Route
• Peripheral Route

This page was originally posted on 11/07/03