The research aimed at the exploration of gender differences in the quality of close relationships with a mother, a father, a sibling, a partner, and a friend concerning the negative exchange in the form of conflicts and antagonism, as well as the role of personality traits and communication styles in the development of individual differences. The sample consisted of 400 participants (69% females), age from 19 to 51. Data were collected using the short version of personality questionnaire Big Five Plus Two (VP+2-70), questionnaire about close relationship quality Network of Relationship Inventory (NRI), and the scale for estimating communication skills, Communicator Style Measure (CSM). The results confirmed gender specificities concerning a degree of the negative exchange in the relationship types, and their correlations with personality traits and communication style. Females had stronger negative exchange with partners and fathers, while males had it with siblings. Extraverted females had more conflicts with their mothers. Higher Openness and Positive Valence of males was followed by greater conflicts with partner and lower Antagonism with friends, whereas the higher Consciousness was followed by greater negative exchange with siblings. Daughters with more assertive communication and sons with more expressive communication had stronger degree of confrontations with parents. On the other hand, males with more assertive communication, and females with more expressive communication had stronger conflicts with partners. Stronger negative exchange of females with fathers and partners was probably due to their greater orientation to deal with relationship problems and emancipation needs. The result that more assertive women had stronger degree of conflict with parents maybe the results from the fostering of the honest communication in the family of origin. Confronting more assertive women with their parents may stem from fostering honest and directive communication in the family of origin. Given that the society pressures males to be independent, the result that more expressive males had stronger negative exchange with their family of origin had been expected. These findings showed that expressiveness indicate immaturity. The willingness of more assertive men to engage in a negative exchange with a partner indicates their involvement in the relationship.

The aim of this study was to examine the relations between the quality of close relationships and attachment styles using a clinical sample (N = 57.61% female, Age range = 17-68 years). To measure the quality of social functioning we used the Inventory of the Social Relations Network (NRI), to assess the attachment styles, we used the Relationships Questionnaire (RQ), and for assessing the severity of psychopathological symptoms: the Beck Depression Inventory, Cornell index and MMPI-202 were used. The obtained results showed that subjects of different categories of mental disorders do not differ significantly according to general estimates of the quality of close relationships. However, when considering the dimensions of psychopathological symptoms, we found statistically significant differences in the quality of close relationships. The research also shows that subjects with different attachment styles significantly differ in the quality of close relationships. Given that more pronounced psychopathological problems are associated with diminished quality of close relationships, we discussed that mental difficulties are potentially adversely reflected in the social functioning of individuals.

Istraživanjem se razmatrao značaj personalnih korelata kvaliteta bliskih odnosa u odraslom dobu. Postavilo se pitanje u kojoj meri osobine ličnosti i afektivna vezanost doprinose njihovom kvalitetu. Istraživanje je realizovano 2015. godine u Novom Sadu na uzorku od 400 ispitanika oba pola, uzrasta od 19 do 51 godine, putem mernih instrumenata: Inventar mreže socijalnih odnosa, Velikih pet plus dva, Upitnik za procenu afektivne vezanosti. Modeli hijerarhijske regresije za kvalitet bliskih odnosa (p < .01) ukazuju na značajnost pojedinih osobina ličnosti i dimenzija afektivne vezanosti. U najslabijem slučaju, pretpostavljeni model objašnjava 5% varijanse kvaliteta odnosa sa ocem. Osobina ekstraverzija je značajni korelat većine bliskih odnosa (najniža prediktorska snaga za odnos sa ocem i partnerom β = .13). Slede ju negativna valenca i savesnost, dok se afektivna vezanost pokazuje značajnom u slučaju odnosa sa braćom/sestrama. Različiti korelati ličnosti i afektivne vezanosti se pokazuju značajni za različite bliske odnose što je protumačeno razlikama po pitanju mehanizama funkcionisanja bliskih odnosa i njihove uloge i funkcija u životu pojedinaca.

The aim of this study is to examine the differences between four attachment styles in relation to symptoms of psychopathology and the quality of social interaction, as well as to determine the role of attachment and psychopathology in predicting positive and negative social exchange. A total of 57 participants from the neuropsychiatric department of the Service for Specialist-Consultative Health Activities of the Health Centre in Novi Sad took part in the research. Respondents were mostly female (61%), aged 17 to 68 (M=40.13, SD=12.35). The Relationship Questionnaire (RQ) was used for attachment styles assessment. Psychopathological symptoms were measured using the Cornell Index (CI-N4), and the quality of social relationships was evaluated via the Network of Relationship Inventory (NRI). The highest rate of symptoms was detected in subjects with a preoccupied style, followed by those whose style was identified as fearful. The same two styles showed the least positive social exchange. Statistically significant differences on most scales from CI-N4 were found mainly between the secure and preoccupied subjects, while subjects with the avoidant pattern did not demonstrate significant differences in psychopathology and social functioning compared to secure participants. Secure affective attachment and low aggressive-antisocial indicators (impulsiveness, aggression, and paranoia) were the most important predictors of positive social exchange. Understanding psychopathological manifestations of different insecure attachment styles can contribute to the efficiency of psychodiagnostic and psychotherapeutic processes. Furthermore, the fact that insecure attachment and aggressive-antisocial factor predominantly compromise positive social interaction can facilitate goal setting during psychological treatment within the clinical spectrum.

In order to better understand the phenomenon of the quality of different types of close relationships of adults, we have investigated several determinants which define them more clearly. We focused on the relational differences of the respondents according to several sociodemographic (age, gender, employment, marital status and children) and environmental factors (structure and relationships in the family). A total of 400 males and females, ranging from 19 to 51 years, completed a general questionnaire. It collected the data related to sociodemographic and environmental characteristics, as well as the Social Relations Network Inventory (NRI), which assessed the quality of five types of close relationships. The results indicate significant differences between the respondents in the quality of individual close relationships, based on the factors of age, gender, employment, marital status and parenthood, as well as according to the factors of the quality of family relations and parental marital status. The identified differences are particularly pronounced in terms of the quality of the relationship with the mother and the quality of the relationship with the friend, which is explained by the characteristic nature of these relationships, as well as the developmental roles and tasks of the adulthood.