Schröder, Janeke (2022) “My Life is a Question Mark. My Future is a Question Mark.”: Using Emotional Self-Disclosures to Pursue Intimacy in Speed-Dating Interactions. Bachelor thesis, Psychology.
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A thesis is an aptitude test for students. The approval of the thesis is proof that the student has sufficient research and reporting skills to graduate but does not guarantee the quality of the research and the results of the research as such, and the thesis is therefore not necessarily suitable to be used as an academic source to refer to. If you would like to know more about the research discussed in this thesis and any publications based on it, to which you could refer, please contact the supervisor mentioned.
Abstract
Intimacy is crucial for high-quality relationships. Most current research focuses on individuals’ subjective perception of intimacy. The present paper aimed to contribute to a more comprehensive understanding of the concept by focusing on its performance aspect. In this context, intimacy was understood as a process of behaviors that are performed in interactions and can be directly observed. The two key factors of intimacy construction are self-disclosures of personally relevant information and responsive partner behavior. A qualitative content analysis of 56 speed-dating conversations of 16 same-sex attracted men was conducted to investigate patterns of intimacy construction in emerging interpersonal relationships. Identity claims containing emotional self-disclosures were identified and extracted together with the context in which they occurred. A sample of 30 excerpts of conversations was analyzed in terms of how interaction partners dealt with emotional self-disclosures. It was observed that in most of the cases individuals did not reciprocate self-disclosures – especially when they contained negative or vulnerable content. Self-disclosures were more likely to be met with responsiveness if they were positive or neutral. Shared experiences or interests promoted intimacy construction. Concluding, emotional self-disclosures in initial encounters arguably only had a beneficial effect on intimacy construction, given that they were relatively easy to deal with. This entails theoretical and practical implications, like a sensible use of self-disclosures in clinical practice. Further research is needed to verify the presented observations in different contexts and samples.
| Item Type: | Thesis (Bachelor) |
|---|---|
| Supervisor name: | Gmelin, J.H. and Klavina, L. |
| Degree programme: | Psychology |
| Differentiation route: | None [Bachelor Psychology] |
| Date Deposited: | 18 Aug 2022 10:28 |
| Last Modified: | 18 Aug 2022 10:28 |
| URI: | http://gmwpublic.studenttheses.ub.rug.nl/id/eprint/1296 |
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