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The Sting of Lack of Affection: Chronic Goal Dissatisfaction in Transference

2008; Taylor & Francis; Volume: 7; Issue: 4 Linguagem: Inglês

10.1080/15298860701800092

1529-8876

Michele S. Berk, Susan M. Andersen,

Social and Intergroup Psychology

Abstract The social-cognitive transference process evokes relevant affect and motivation. When a significant-other representation is activated, this indirectly activates motives and emotions experienced with that significant other (e.g., Andersen, Reznik, & Manzella, Citation1996). We predicted that this activated motivation in transference, if chronically dissatisfied in the significant-other relationship, would provoke diminished approach motivation, increased hostility and, paradoxically, heightened affection-seeking behavior as hostility increases. Participants whose affection goals with a significant other were chronically dissatisfied (or satisfied) learned about a new person who resembled this significant other (or did not). As predicted, participants in this resemblance condition whose affection goals were dissatisfied reported dampened approach motivation, increased hostility, and an association between this hostility and behavioral persistence on a task designed to solicit liking from a new person. Keywords: Significant othersRelationshipsTransferenceUnsatisfied goalsMotivationHostile affectBehavior Acknowledgments This research was conducted as part of Michele Berk's doctoral dissertation under the supervision of Susan Andersen. The authors thank the members of her dissertation committee, John Bargh, Geraldine Downey, Peter Gollwitzer, and Jim Uleman, for their contributions to the work. We also thank Janna Wallack and Karen Landman for serving as research assistants, and Carolyn Morf, John Holmes, and two anonymous reviewers for their comments on the manuscript. Notes 1. Because very few significant-other features are required to trigger transference (Andersen et al., Citation1995), we chose to make use of fewer significant-other descriptors as target features in this research than have been used in other studies (Andersen & Baum, Citation1994; Andersen et al., Citation1996). 2. All participants learned about a target of the same gender as their own significant other. 3. We also assessed memory confidence by considering the valence of the target descriptor (positive/negative) in the analysis—i.e., in a similar ANCOVA, with valence of the memory-test item as a repeated measure, which yielded the same main effect for resemblance. No other findings emerged, which suggests that the effect does not depend on descriptor valence. 4. It is worth noting that even in relationships involving unsatisfied goals, people often remain in the relationship, feeling positively enough about the significant other to stay. People are motivated to maintain their close relationships and perhaps to believe that "deep down" their significant other likes or loves them reciprocally—even if the other's positive feelings are not expressed in desired ways (see, e.g., Murray & Holmes, Citation1993). Beyond this, it could be argued that positive expectancy effects in transference may be due to self-presentational concerns in that people may simply prefer not to report expectations of being disliked by someone resembling their significant other. We have no reason to believe, however, that participants were aware of the relevance of their significant other in the resemblance condition, a precondition for self-presentation effects in this condition. In short, this effect is likely due to transferring the valence of the activated significant-other representation to the new person. 5. All planned comparisons were based on directional a priori hypotheses and were thus one-tailed.