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Positive Illusions in Romantic Relationships Personal Relationships, 5 (1998), 159-181. Printed in the United States of America. Copyright 0 1998 ISSPR. 1350-4126/98 $9.50 Positive illusion in close relationships JOHN M. MARTZ,a JULIE VERETTE,” XIMENA B. ARRIAGA,b LINDA F. SLOVIK,a CHANTE L. COX: AND CARYL E. RUSBULTa a University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill; bClaremont Graduate University; and ‘Mississippi State University Abstract The literature regarding self-other comparisons suggests that self-enhancing perceptions are prevalent, including forms of “illusion” such as excessively positive self-evaluation, unrealistic optimism, and exaggerated perceptions of control. Concepts from optimal distinctiveness theory served as the basis for two experiments examining whether illusion functions similarly when the context of evaluation involves a relationship. In both experiments participants rated themselves, the best friend, and the average other-or their own romantic relationships, the best friend’s relationship, and the relationship of the average other-using scales measuring positivity of evaluation, optimism regarding the future, and perceptions of control. In both experiments, participants exhibited centrality-based differentiation, rating targets more favorably to the degree that the target was more central to their social identity. Patterns of differentiation differed for the two contexts: In the individual context, participants differentiated themselves and their friends from the average other. In the relationship context, participants differentiated their own relationships from the relationships of friends and average others. Also, participants rated individuals as more controllable than relationships. Participants in Experiment 2 provided information regarding potential predictors of illusion. Analyses of these data suggest that favorable centrality-based differentiation may be partially accounted for by impression management, global self-esteem (particularly in the individual context), and commitment level (particularly in the relationship context). What wild imagination one forms, where dear This research is dedicated to John Martz (1964-1995). John was an excellent scientist and an exceptional hu- self is concerned! How sure to be mistaken! man being. His enthusiasm for science and for life’s -Jane Austen other pleasures infected and inspired his friends, col- leagues, and students. We miss him very much. Whether confronted with negative or posi- The research was supported in part by a grant to tive events, whether evaluating ourselves or Caryl E. Rusbult from the NSF (No. BNS-9023817); our peers, we live in a world of illusion (e.g., preparation of this manuscript was supported by a Reynolds Research and Study Leave from the Univer- Alicke, 1985; Brown, 1986; Lipkus, Martz, sity of North Carolina and by a Visitor’s Grant from Panter, Drigotas, & Feaganes, 1993; Show- the Netherlands Organization of Scientific Research. ers, 1992; Tajfel & Turner, 1986; Taylor & We thank Abigail T. Panter and Elliot M. Cramer for Koivumaki, 1976;Van Knippenberg & Elle- their statistical advice. For their helpful comments re- mers, 1990; Weinstein, 1980). Although our garding earlier drafts of this article, we thank Christo- pher R. Agnew, Victor I. Bissonnette, Stanley 0. subjective experience of the social world in Gaines, Shelley Dean Peterson, Michael 0. Wexler, part reflects reality, perception and cogni- Jennifer Wieselquist, Arjay R. Wright, and Nancy A. tion frequently are self-enhancing, deviat- Yovetich, as well as Keith E. Davis, Garth J. 0. ing from a strictly veridical view of the Fletcher, and three anonymous reviewers. world. It has been argued that such miscon- Correspondence should be addressed to Caryl E. Rusbult, Department of Psychology, University of ceptions indicate poor adjustment and yield North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC 27599- negative consequences (e.g., DeJoy, 1989; 3270; E-Mail: [email protected] Miller, Ashton, McHoskey, & Gimbel, 159 160 J.M. Martz et al. 1990). However, Taylor and Brown (1988) than is actually likely to be the case. A third suggest an alternative perspective (cf. type of illusion involves unrealistic opti- Scheier & Carver, 1993).These authors pro- mism about the jkture-the tendency to pose that such biased thinking to some ex- perceive the future as exceptionally benign, tent represents adaptive functioning, and particularly our own futures. that some degree of self-enhancement The illusions of positivity, optimism, and tends to be “characteristic of normal hu- control involve implicit or explicit compari- man thought” (p. 193). sons of the self to another person(s)-com- The present work explores the gener- parisons that serve to differentiate the self alizability of illusion phenomena to the from others in a favorable manner. In addi- realm of groups-specifically, to percep- tion to self-other differentiation, illusions tions of close relationships. We propose that also function to differentiate intimates parallel forms of illusion characterize cog- from other persons (e.g., Brown, 1986; Tay- nition regarding relationships, and we ex- lor & Koivumaki, 1976). Research examin- plore the nature of such cognitions by test- ing comparisons of the self, intimates, and ing hypotheses derived from Brewer’s other individuals (e.g., Campbell, 1986;Hall (1991) optimal distinctiveness theory. More & Taylor, 1976; Vallone, Griffin, Lin, & generally, we suggest that illusion in close Ross, 1990; Van Lange, 1991) has demon- relationships serves an important function, strated that individuals evaluate themselves representing a habit of thinking that sup- more positively than they evaluate their in- ports the decision to persist in a relation- timates, and they evaluate their intimates ship (cf. Rusbult & Buunk, 1993). It is easier more positively than does the average per- to sustain the energies needed to maintain son (cf. Taylor & Brown, 1988;Wood, 1989). a relationship (e.g., to accommodate, to Differentiation between an intimate and a derogate tempting alternatives) when one’s stranger may involve assimilation of the in- relationship is regarded as desirable and timate other into one’s social identity, as controllable, with a rosy future. The specific suggested by optimal distinctiveness theory. goal of the present research was to examine the existence and nature of illusion regard- Favorable Centrality-Based ing relationships; the present work merely Differentiation for individuals and Groups suggests the adaptive value of such illusion. Optimal distinctiveness theory (Brewer, 1991) suggests that self-other differentia- Favorable Self-other Differentiation tion occurs along a continuum (e.g., self > Based on an extensive review of the litera- intimate other > stranger). This theory ture regarding bias in human cognition, characterizes social identity as “a reconcili- Taylor and Brown (1988) identified three ation of opposing needs for assimilation forms of self-enhancement, which they de- and differentiation from others” (p. 475). scribe as “illusions.” This term is employed There is an optimal balance between the to represent “pervasive, enduring, and sys- need to regard oneself as part of a social tematic” cognitive misconceptions, as op- unit (social identity) and the need to regard posed to “error” or “bias,” which imply oneself as a distinct individual (personal short-lived and specific mistakes. One type identity). Individuals make favorable com- of illusion involves excessively positive self- parisons of intimates to strangers because evaluation-the tendency to perceive our- enhancing an intimate-who is relatively selves as superior to the average person, central to one’s social identity-serves to and to evaluate ourselves more positively enhance one’s social self. Thus, rather than than others evaluate us. A second type of describing the “self-enhancement” litera- illusion involves exaggerated perceptions of ture in terms of the self (i.e., in terms of control-the tendency to perceive that we favorable self-other differentiation), it may have greater control over events in our lives be appropriate to speak of centrality-based Positive illuiion in close relationships 161 differentiation-favorable differentiation about others’ relationships (Buunk, Collins, on the basis of the centrality of a target to Taylor, Van Yperen, & Dakof, 1990; Buunk one’s identity, where more central targets & Van Yperen, 1991; Hall & Taylor, 1976; are simultaneously assimilated into the self Murray & Holmes, 1993; Murray, Holmes, and differentiated from less central targets. & Griffin, 1996a, 1996b; Van Lange & Rus- Optimal distinctiveness theory also pro- bult, 1995). That is, more central targets of vides a rationale for the proposition that evaluation (i.e., one’s own grouphelation- the illusions of positivity, optimism, and ship) appear to be favorably differentiated control may color perceptions of relation- from less central targets, irrespective of the ships (i.e., dyads or groups) much as they context of evaluation (i.e., whether perceiv- color perceptions of individuals. Compari- ing individuals or relationships; cf. Brewer, sons of ingroups to outgroups follow a pat- 1991; Goethals & Darley, 1987; Levine & tern of evaluation similar to that observed Moreland, 1987; Smith, 1993). For example, in the literature on self-other compari- just as an individual may hold more be- sons-a similarity predicated by both social nevolent beliefs about her best friend than identity theory and self-categorization about the average person,
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