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As methods for measuring the relationship between personality and behavior have become more sophisticated, so too has the interest in better explaining the role that environments play in this relationship. Recent efforts have been made to clarify the hypothesized moderating role of environments on this relationship and Cooper and Withey

As methods for measuring the relationship between personality and behavior have become more sophisticated, so too has the interest in better explaining the role that environments play in this relationship. Recent efforts have been made to clarify the hypothesized moderating role of environments on this relationship and Cooper and Withey (2009), in particular, have provided evidence for the paucity of empirical research that explains the ways in which strong and weak situations may differentially affect the relationship between personality and behavior. They contend, through a thorough review of the literature, that the intuitive nature of the theory provides promise and that there is likely some substantive basis for the assertion that environmental strength should moderate the relationship between personality and theoretically relevant behaviors. The current study was designed to test the moderating influence of interpersonal environment on the relationship between interpersonal personality and interpersonal behavior, specifically whether the evidence exists for the hypothesis that moderation differentially exists for strong and weak environments. No evidence was provided for the moderating role of environments. Evidence was provided for the predictive utility of traits in all models.
ContributorsPrimé, Dominic (Author) / Tracey, Terence JG (Thesis advisor) / Bernstein, Bianca L (Committee member) / Thompson, Marilyn (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2016
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Description
Affection represents a positive and often intimate psychological state (Floyd & Morman, 1998) that is communicated through verbal, nonverbal, and social supportive behaviors. A formidable research literature indicates that receiving and expressing affection significantly benefits health. One form of affection that may produce these benefits is cuddling. Cuddling includes intimate,

Affection represents a positive and often intimate psychological state (Floyd & Morman, 1998) that is communicated through verbal, nonverbal, and social supportive behaviors. A formidable research literature indicates that receiving and expressing affection significantly benefits health. One form of affection that may produce these benefits is cuddling. Cuddling includes intimate, physical, and loving whole-body contact that does not necessarily include sexual activity and tends to be reserved for very intimate relationships. Working from affectionate exchange theory (Floyd, 2001), this study’s purpose is to examine the effects of cuddling on relational health for individuals living with their spouse. To test a causal relationship between cuddling and relational health, a four-week experiment was conducted. Eighty adults were randomly assigned to one of three conditions: (1) a treatment condition in which individuals were instructed to increase cuddling behaviors with their spouse, (2) a comparison condition in which individuals were instructed to increase shared mealtime with their spouse, or (3) a control condition in which individuals were instructed to not change their behavior. Individuals in the treatment condition were predicted to experience significant improvements in relational health as outlined in the investment model (i.e., relational satisfaction, investment, quality of alternatives, and commitment) to a greater extent than individuals in the comparison or control conditions. A research question explored whether individuals in the comparison condition differed from those in the control condition. Planned contrasts were conducted to test the hypotheses. Results revealed that individuals in the treatment condition reported more relationship satisfaction and commitment and less quality of alternatives than individuals in the comparison and control conditions. Experimental conditions did not differ on reports of investment. Finally, individuals in the comparison and control conditions did not differ on any of the relational health markers. These findings support affection exchange theory and contribute to a growing literature identifying the benefits of affectionate communication. Moreover, the methodology and results of this study provide compelling evidence for a causal relationship between cuddling and satisfaction and commitment for relatively satisfied couples.
Contributorsvan Raalte, Lisa J (Author) / Floyd, Kory (Thesis advisor) / Mongeau, Paul (Thesis advisor) / Burleson, Mary (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2017