Question

How do perceptual processes influence the initiation (or lack thereof) and maintaining of relationships?

Answer 1

The perceptual process is the sequence of psychological steps that a person uses to organize & interpret information from the outside world. The steps are: Objects are present in the world. A person observes. The person uses perception to select objects.

There are three stages of perception: selection, organization, and interpretation. In selection, the first stage, we choose stimuli that attract our attention. We focus on the ones that stand out to our senses (sight, sound, smell, taste, and touch).

High quality close relationships contribute to mental and physical well-being; poor quality close relationships create stress and undermine health and well-being Relationship quality depends on beliefs about a relationship partner’s responsiveness--that is, on the perception that a partner understands, values, and supports important aspects of the self. People who perceive their relationship partners as responsive feel close, satisfied, and committed to those relationships

The dynamic of responsiveness in dyadic relationships -- relationship processes that promote reciprocation of responsiveness between relationship partners, affecting both partners’ relationship quality over time. It suggests that people’s interpersonal goals for their relationships, that is their compassionate goals to support others and their self-image goals to create and maintain desired self-images predict positive & negative responsiveness dynamics respectively, changing both people’s relationship quality. so, people can create responsive, high-quality relationships for themselves and others.

Responsiveness in Relationship:Responsive relationship partners convey understanding, validation, and caring . They are warm, sensitive to their partners’ feelings, and want to make their partners feel comfortable, valued, listened to, and understood.

Theories and research on responsiveness suggests that people’s responsiveness to partners contributes to both their own and partners’ perceptions of responsiveness in the relationship. Lemay and colleagues found that people contribute to their own experiences of responsiveness in close relationships; when people report being responsive to relationship partners, they project their responsiveness onto partners & perceive partners as more responsive. Some researchers characterize responsiveness as a transactional process between relationship partners. According to Reis & Shaver research the close relationships develop through an interpersonal process in which actors’ reactions to partners influence partners’ perceptions of actors’ responsiveness. Importantly, Reis and Shaver state that goals, motives, needs, and fears of both relationship partners contribute to & result from responsiveness in the relationship. therefore, goals & motives show people’s relationship behaviors & how they interpret partners’ behaviors, which in turn, feed back to predict goals & motives.

2), projected and reciprocated responsiveness can become self-perpetuating: relationship goals promote or undermine projection &reciprocation of responsiveness, which reinforce both people’s subsequent relationship goals. Thus, through their interpersonal goals, people can create responsive, high-quality relationships for themselves and others and contribute to both people’s goals for the relationship.

3) Both immediate & long-term intra- and interpersonal responsiveness dynamics & resulting relationship outcomes as they evolve over time. Previous research suggests that these processes should occur quickly within relationships, guiding people’s relationship experiences and goals in the moment.It that the effects of compassionate, self-image goals and responsiveness extend over time, predicting change in people’s relationship experiences and goals from day to day and week to week, & that chronic interpersonal goals predict long-term changes in relationship experiences & interpersonal goals over weeks and months. Thus, we propose that projection of responsiveness & reciprocation of responsiveness dynamically affect short-term fluctuations & long-term changes in relationship outcomes.