ERIC Number: ED208273
Record Type: RIE
Publication Date: 1981-Mar
Pages: 10
Abstractor: N/A
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: N/A
EISSN: N/A
When Opposites May Attract: Self-Monitoring and Dating Relationships.
Tomarelli, Michele M.; Graziano, William G.
Individual differences in the motivation and skill to manage impressions can be measured by the Self-Monitoring Scale. "Blind" dating encounters were established to investigate whether complementarity rather than similarity in partner's self-monitoring would lead to greater attraction and satisfaction with the relationship. College students (N=64 couples) completed the Self-Monitoring Scale, the Bem Androgyny Scale, and personal data forms. Pairs of subjects met each other and conversed briefly. After the initial meeting, subjects completed Dion Scales to give impressions of their partners. Pairs then dated each other exclusively for three weeks (a minimum of three dates) and then completed a final Dion Scale. Results showed that high self-monitoring women were more favorable than low self-monitoring women about their dates, regardless of males' levels of self-monitoring. All males, however, preferred low self-monitoring women. These findings provide no evidence that complementarity of self-monitoring affects attraction in a dating situation. (NRB)
Publication Type: Reports - Research; Speeches/Meeting Papers
Education Level: N/A
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A
Note: Paper presented at the Annual Meeting of the Southeastern Psychological Association (27th, Atlanta, GA, March 25-28, 1981).