The role of ideal similarity in partner selection and relationship satisfaction
Iulia Diana Muraru, Maria Nicoleta Turliuc, Lorena Antonovici
This research examines the role of ideal standards (warmth-trustworthiness, vitality-attractiveness, status-resources, intimacy-loyalty and passion) in partner selection and relationship satisfaction. More specifically, we tested if the interest of hypothetical partners for an ideal trait influences participants’ decision to select them as romantic partners, the role of ideal similarity in partner selection (study 1) and whether real-ideal consistency and ideal similarity predict relationship satisfaction (study 2). The results of study 1 show that, throughout the entire sample, the preferences of the assessment target in relation to the dimensions of vitality-attractiveness, status-resources and intimacy-loyalty influence the participants’ decision to select them as future romantic partners. Also, ideal similarity about vitality-attractiveness, status-resources, intimacy-loyalty and passion predicts participants’ partner selection. The results of study 2 show that ideal similarity on warmth-trustworthiness and intimacy-loyalty (but not vitality-attractiveness, status-resources, and passion) predicts women’s relationship satisfaction. Ideal similarity does not predict men’s relationship satisfaction for neither dimension. Also, when testing the relationship between real-ideal consistency (within actor-partner interdependence model), the results showed significant actor and partner effects for warmth-trustworthiness and intimacy-loyalty, significant actor effects for status-resources and passion and significant partner effects for vitality-attractiveness.
ideal standards model, similarity, partner selection, actor-partner interdependence model, relationship satisfaction
Maria Nicoleta Turliuc – Al. I. Cuza University, Iaşi, Romania, Faculty of Psychology and Educational Sciences, E-mail: turliuc@uaic.ro
