1. Objectifs

Intentions :
«In the present study, we examined how priming the relationship can buffer individuals from reciprocating negative partner behavior and instead increase pro-relationship responses, in addition to assessing how individual differences in relational self-construal may moderate this effect.» (p. 85)

Questions/Hypothèses :
«We hypothesized that a relational prime would allow individuals to interpret partner misbehavior within a broader relational context, thus avoiding narrowly focusing on a specific negative behavior, and consequently making more benign attributions for the negative behavior.» (p. 88-89)

2. Méthode

Échantillon/Matériau :
Cent-quarante étudiants de l’université McGill (59 hommes et 81 femmes) composent l’échantillon de cette étude.

Instruments :
Questionnaires

Type de traitement des données :
Analyse statistique

3. Résumé

«When faced with a partner transgression, what causes an individual to avoid the temptation to respond in kind? We theorized that for those who incorporate their close relationships into their sense of self, priming a mental representation of their romantic partner would activate relationship-relevant cognitive–affective associations that would promote pro-relationship responding. [...] Results demonstrated that participants with a highly relational self-construal exhibited an increase in benign attributions for a partner transgression following a relationship reminder, controlling for relationship satisfaction and commitment. It was concluded that relational self-construal is an important individual difference variable in the experimental activation of relationship maintenance processes.» (p. 85)