Showing papers on "Interpersonal relationship published in 1982"

A Research Note The Relations Among Social and Task Perceptions in Small Groups

Abstract: The concepts of social and task functions in small groups have appeared repetitively in group literature. For example, Rosenfeld (1973: 21) refers to task functions as those that &dquo;provide rewards to members by virtue of the group’s ability to operate in its given environment&dquo; and maintenance functions as those that &dquo;provide compensations to issure that each member is kept above his Comparison Level for Alternatives.&dquo; Napier and Gershenfeld (1973) and Applbaum et al. (1974) address the issue in terms of role types. Task roles are those that help &dquo;the group select and define the common goals and work toward solution of those goals&dquo; (Napier and Gershenfeld, 1973: 145), while group maintenance roles focus on the personal relations among members in a group. Fisher (1973: 29) identifies the task dimension as &dquo;the relationship between group members and the work they are to perform&dquo; and the social dimension as &dquo;the relationships of group members with each other-how they feel toward each other and about their membership in the group.&dquo; Some researchers approach the study of small groups from the perspective of separation between social and task. For example, the classic work by Parsons and Shils (1951) views groups as miniature social systems with three goals-how to accomplish the

Assessment of Social Skills

Abstract: Deficiencies in social skills, important in the functional adjustment and rehabilitation of persons with schizophrenia, derive from inadequate learning experiences, disuse, anxiety, cognitive disturbances, and amotivational states. Social skills training programs should be specifically organized to compensate for these varied sources of deficiency in interpersonal competence. Assessment of social skills deficits can proceed along topographical, functional, and information-processing lines. Assessment technology is in its early stages of development and will require attention to the psychometric properties and multidimensional focus of evaluative instruments.

Loneliness and social skill deficits.

Abstract: The relationship between social skill deficits and the psychological state of loneliness was examined in two studies. Study 1 compared conversational behaviors of high-lonely and low-lonely college students during brief heterosexual interactions. Results indicated that the two loneliness groups differed significantly in their use of a specific class of conversational behaviors termed partner attention, with high-lonely as compared to low-lonely subjects giving less attention to their partners. Study 2 examined the casual relationship between social skill and loneliness by directly manipulating the use of partner attention in a group of high-lonely males. For that group, increased use of partner attention during dyadic interactions resulted in significantly greater change in loneliness and related variables relative to interaction only and no-contact control groups. The utility of conceptualizing loneliness as a social skills problem is discussed.

A study of upward influence in organizations.

Abstract: ? 1982 by Cornell University. 0001 -839218212702-03041$00.75 This study examines the process of upward influence in organizations from the perspectives of both the subordinate and the supervisor. The study provides a list of categories and supporting data for the agents and methods of influence, the perceived causes of success and failure, and the perceived outcomes in upward-influence episodes. The results suggestthat subordinates and supervisors report (1) similar agents and methods of influence used by subordinates in both successful and unsuccessful attempts; (2) similar outcomes of attempts to influence; and (3) similar causes of success in upward influence attempts. Subordinates and supervisors, however, report different causes of failure. This study also examines the structural, individual, and situational factors that are associated with success and failure in upward influence activity.

Responses to Failure: The Effects of Choice and Responsibility on Impression Management

Abstract: The study demonstrates that, when confronted with failure, subjects may attempt to justify their position by manipulating information that is to be presented to others. Evidence also was found that...

An extension of Marcia's Identity Status Interview into the interpersonal domain.

Abstract: This article describes an extension of Marcia's (1966) Identity Status Interview into three interpersonal domains: friendships, dating, and sex roles The Identity Status Interview method is assessed favorably in terms of identity theory, justification for the three new sections is provided on the basis of theory and research on sex differences in adolescent identity, and methodological refinements in the interview are described A study is reported in which the extended interview was administered to 41 male and 40 female high school juniors and seniors Average percentage of exact agreement for ratings of exploration, commitment, and identity status was over 70% when two coders were used and over 94% when the ratings of two out of three coders were used It is concluded that this extended interview is psychometrically sound and provides a method for assessing interpersonal issues salient to contemporary adolescents

Pretherapy Interpersonal Relations, Patients' Alliance, and Outcome in Brief Therapy

Abstract: • This study examined the relationship between pretherapy clinical assessments of interpersonal relations and (1) patients' therapeutic alliance and (2) outcome in time-limited psychotherapy (up to 25 sessions). For 33 college men with symptoms of depression, anxiety, and social introversion, clinical judgments of interpersonal relations predicted patients' level of collaborative, positively toned participation in a therapeutic relationship, accounting for up to a quarter of the variance in observers' ratings of audiotaped segments from therapy sessions. Pretherapy assessments of overall psychological health were highly comparable with assessments of interpersonal relations as predictors of a patient's alliance; however, when the redundancy between the two types of clinical judgments was controlled, interpersonal relations were the better predictor. Assessments of interpersonal relations were found to correlate with outcome measures at a modest level.

Sex Differences in Antecedents of Substance Use Among Adolescents

Abstract: This research focuses on sex differences in teenage marijuana, alcohol and cigarette use. The population consisted of the 705 first-graders of Woodlawn (a poor black Chicago neighborhood) who were assessed in first grade in 1966–1967 and reassessed ten years later. Teenage males reported more use of marijuana and alcohol than females but males and females reported similar use of cigarettes. We examined these sex differences from two theoretical perspectives, social adaptation and social bonds. The former refers to the success or failure of an individual in meeting the social task demands in a specific social field at a specific stage of life. The latter is concerned with the attachment or commitment of an individual to social institutions such as family, school, and peers. Since we found important sex differences in the antecedent, concurrent and mediating variables relating to adolescent substance use, we conclude that further study of substance use should focus on male and female differences, and that at least some of the origins of substance use differ for males and females.

Delivery of social support: the social inoculation

Abstract: A review of the literature on health breakdown and susceptibility to mental and physical illness points to a pervasive relationship between health status and the insufficiency or disruption of interpersonal ties. Social marginality and loss are commonly associated with high incidence of breakdown in diverse forms. The mechanism by which social relationships may affect the immunological system, and the social mechanisms that promote continued social ties are examined. The emergence of supportive networks and the preventive role of mental health workers are considered.

Satisfaction in Lesbian Relationships

Abstract: A questionnaire study of 127 lesbians tested hypotheses from the social psychological literature about factors associated with relationship satisfaction. In general, lesbians in the sample reported fairly high levels of satisfaction and love in their current relationship. Results indicated that satisfaction was more strongly related to characteristics of the relationship itself than to the individual attitudes or background characteristics of individual partners. In particular, greater satisfaction was associated with equality of involvement and equality of power in the relationship. Some evidence was also found that similarity was associated with greater satisfaction.

Cognitive and social skills correlates of social anxiety

Abstract: In order to assess the factors which influence the occurrence of social anxiety, 45 subjects (25 male and 20 female) were divided into high, moderate and low social anxiety groups on the basis of a self-report inventory. Their performance in a series of simulated social interactions was assessed on self-report measures of anxiety and social skill, cognitive self-statements and judge ratings of overt behaviours. Results obtained indicated differences across the anxiety groups on each of these sets of variables. This was interpreted as being consistent with a view that both cognitive and behavioural variables influence social anxiety.

Loneliness The Relationship of Self-Disclosure and Androgyny

Abstract: The relationship of self-disclosure and of psychological masculinity and femininity to the experience of loneliness was examined in a sample of college students. Since both disclosure and sex-typing are important factors in close interpersonal relationships, it was expected that they would also be associated with loneliness the experience of a deficiency in one's social relations. As predicted, loneliness was negatively correlated with past disclosure, willingness to disclose, and social responsiveness, but only for women. High masculinity and high femininity offered protection against loneliness, with androgynous students being least lonely.

Predictors of satisfactory social adjustment of divorced single parents

Abstract: This study examined factors related to satisfactory post-divorce social adjustment of 206 randomly selected single parents who had custody of their children. Data were collected from personal interviews. A social adjustment scale served as the criterion measure of adjustment. The strongest single predictor of adjustment was the parent's subjective feelings of well-being and absence of distress. Other significant factors included the proportion of family income emanating from welfare, the family's current social status, the quality of relationship with significant others, perceived size of and satisfaction with social network support and remarriage of the custodial parent.

Dysfunctional marital conflict: an integrative interpersonal‐intrapsychic model*

Abstract: An integrative interpersonal-intrapsychic model of dysfunctional marital conflict is presented and research support for the model is reviewed. The therapeutic applications of the model are discussed and illustrated with a clinical example.