Blackwell Reference Online

Extract

Relational cohesion theory was designed to explain when and how people involved in exchange relations become committed to their relationship. This extensive research program was developed by Edward Lawler, Jeongkoo Yoon, and Shane Thye and has become one of the most cumulative research programs in sociological social psychology ( Lawler & Yoon 1993, 1996, 1998 ; Lawler et al. 2000 ). The theory predicts that dyads embedded in equal power relations within exchange networks are more likely to engage in repeated exchange relations than dyads embedded in more unequal power arrangements. These frequent successful exchange episodes are, in turn, predicted to lead to a higher frequency of experience of positive emotions. When individuals attempt to ascertain the source of positive and negative feelings, relational cohesion theory predicts that these positive feelings are interpreted as a product of the relationship by way of an attribution process. This serves to make the relationship a cognitively salient object (“setting it off” as distinct from other alternative relations) and to imbue it with positive affect. Thus the relationship becomes an independent object of emotional attachment for the individual, which helps create perceptions of their relation as a cohesive unit. This perceived relational cohesion is thought to result in a host of behavioral outcomes associated with ... log in or subscribe to read full text