Gender differences in standards for romantic relationships

Abstract

Why is it that women often report more problems in their romantic relationships than do men? One explanation apparent in the literature is that women may view different standards as important for relationships than do their male counterparts and, as a consequence, women may be less likely to have their standards met. A second explanation is that while women and men may not differ in terms of the importance they associate with various standards, the experiences they have in their romantic relationships may lead women Lo believe their standards are not fulfilled as often as do men. The current study offers a preliminary test of these two rival explanations and found greater support for the latter. Analyses of two composite measures and more detailed factor‐based measures generally indicated that the standards held by women and men involved in heterosexual romantic relationships were rated similar in importance. Women, however, tended to note that their standards were met less fully than did men. Further, compared to men, women reported a greater discrepancy between the importance they associated with various standards and the extent to which the standards were fulfilled in the context of their relationship. The ability of two different theoretical models to predict and explain these findings is discussed, as re the implications of the results for future research.

The Interpersonal Power of Feminism: Is Feminism Good for Romantic Relationships?

“…They may also have higher expectations of their partners (e.g., for emotional support and intimacy), compared with non-feminists. Over time, if these expectations are not fulfilled, disappointment may result (McNulty and Karney 2004;Sedikides et al 1994;Vangelisti and Daly 1997). In sum, in Study 2 we sought a more diverse sample to further examine the influence of feminism on romantic relationships.…”

The Gift of Similarity: How Good and Bad Gifts Influence Relationships

“…Second, women in dating relationships show a greater proclivity to hold positive illusions about their partners than men, thereby promoting relationship satisfaction and stability (Gagne & Lydon, 2003;Murray, Holmes, & Griffin, 1996a, 1996b. Third, relative to men, women are more responsive to their partner's needs (Vangelisti & Daly, 1997), motivated to seek and maintain relationships (Wong & Csikszentmihalyi, 1991), prone to smooth over disagreements (Morrow et al, 1995), and to adopt an interdependent self-construal (Cross & Madson, 1997). Importantly, feeling similar to close others represents a central component of the self-concept among individuals with an interdependent self-construal (Cross, Morris, & Gore, 2002), suggesting that a threat to perceived similarity may spur defensive processes among women.…”

“…For several reasons, we suspect women may be particularly likely to exhibit such relationship-serving responses. First, women tend to assume the role of "relationship caretaker," buttressing the relationship against threats (e.g., Morrow, Clark, & Brock, 1995;Saarni, 1984;Vangelisti & Daly, 1997). Second, women in dating relationships show a greater proclivity to hold positive illusions about their partners than men, thereby promoting relationship satisfaction and stability (Gagne & Lydon, 2003;Murray, Holmes, & Griffin, 1996a, 1996b.…”

Impact of Time Spent in Parents-Children Communication on Children Misconduct

“…Findings by Salleh et al (2009) have laid seven criteria to develop quality communication, which are: openness, transparency, honesty, clear (clarity), communicate as friend, doing activities and spending time together. Several past research also have come up with communicative relational standards that include showing affection (Baucom et al, 1996;Fletcher et al, 1999;Vangelisti and Daly, 1997;Caughlin, 2003); providing emotional support (Fletcher et al, 1999;Vangelisti et al, 1999;Caughlin, 2003) and having sense of humor (Fletcher et al, 1999;Vangelisti et al, 1999;Caughlin, 2003).…”