Notes created by an A-level psychology private tutor + A* student.
All topic notes for self disclosure (factors affecting attraction)
AQA Psychology A-level
Rela onships 2- Factors a ec ng a rac on: Self-disclosure
Self-disclosure – Revealing personal or “in mate” informa on about yourself.
Roman c partners reveal more about their true selves as a rela onship develops.
These “self-disclosures” about one’s deepest thoughts and feelings can strengthen a roman c bond
when used appropriately.
Altman & Taylor’s (1973) Social Penetra on Theory
An explana on of how rela onships develop.
The gradual process of revealing one’s inner self strengthens a rela onship.
When one person reveals personal informa on they display trust; to go further, the other person
must also reveal sensi ve informa on.
As more and more is disclosed, the partners “penetrate” more deeply into each other’s lives.
Reaching this level of in macy means that their rela onship has reached a certain stage in which
self-disclosure is welcomed and reciprocated.
e.g sharing your favourite genre of music but working up towards more sensi ve informa on such as
past rela onships
Two elements of self-disclosure – Breadth and Depth
At the start of a rela onship, people reveal lots about themselves but this is very super cial –
“breadth” of disclosure (the range of topics people feel comfortable talking about) is narrow
because many topics are “o limits” at the start – revealing too much too soon is not a rac ve.
However, as the rela onship develops, self-disclosure becomes deeper to reveal our “true” selves –
removing more and more layers.
Eventually, people are prepared to reveal in mate, “high-risk” informa on – perhaps highly emo ve
or painful informa on indica ng trust and security with the person.
ALTMAN AND TAYLOR ONION METAPHOR
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