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False Consensus in Romantically Involved Couples FALSE CONSENSUS IN ROMANTICALLY INVOLVED COUPLES A DISSERTATION SUBMITTED TO THE GRADUATE SCHOOL IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY BY AMANDA J. CLEVELAND DISSERTATION ADVISOR: DR. MICHAEL J. WHITE BALL STATE UNIVERSITY MUNCIE, INDIANA DECEMBER, 2012 FALSE CONSENSUS IN ROMANTICALLY INVOLVED COUPLES A DISSERTATION SUBMITTED TO THE GRADUATE SCHOOL IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY BY AMANDA J. CLEVELAND APPROVED BY: ______________________________________ __________________ Committee Chairperson Date _____________________________________ __________________ Committee Member Date ______________________________________ __________________ Committee Member Date ______________________________________ __________________ Committee Member Date ______________________________________ __________________ Dean of Graduate School Date Ball State University Muncie, Indiana December 2012 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS No words are adequate to thank my chair and mentor, Dr. Michael J. White. Your wisdom and your patience have been invaluable. Thank you for teaching by example and for reminding me that work life balance is not only possible but necessary. Thank you to my husband, Travis Robinson. You have supported me unconditionally throughout this long and often difficult process. I can’t image having done this without you. Thank you to Dr. Sharon Bowman, my department chair, clinical supervisor, voice of reason, and last minute committee member. Your continued support and encouragement has been vital to my completion of this process. Thank you to Dr. Sharon Paulson, my other last minute committee member, for making time in your busy schedule to be a present at my defense. Thank you to Dr. Holmes Finch, Dr. Kristin Perrone, and Dr. Paul Spengler for your service on my committee. Each of you provided me with unique and valuable feedback which contributed to writing of this dissertation. Thank you to my colleagues at Lander University. I truly appreciate the support you provided me during the completion of my dissertation. iii TABLE OF CONTENTS ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ............................................................................................... iii TABLE OF CONTENTS ................................................................................................... iv LIST OF TABLES ............................................................................................................. vi CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION ....................................................................................... 1 Statement of the Problem .............................................................................................. 2 Research Question 1 ..................................................................................................... 3 Research Question 2 ..................................................................................................... 4 Implications................................................................................................................... 5 CHAPTER 2 LITERATURE REVIEW ............................................................................ 8 Explanations for False Consensus ................................................................................ 9 Measurement of False Consensus ............................................................................... 12 Situations That Influence the Likelihood of False Consensus .................................... 13 False Consensus in Couples ........................................................................................ 18 The Importance of Accurate Consensus in Couples ................................................... 19 Accuracy of Partners’ Perceptions .............................................................................. 25 False Consensus and Length of Time in the Relationship .......................................... 29 Altering Unrealistic or Distorted Relationship Expectations...................................... 33 Research Questions and Hypotheses .......................................................................... 34 CHAPTER 3 METHOD .................................................................................................. 36 Participants .................................................................................................................. 36 Procedure .................................................................................................................... 39 Measures ..................................................................................................................... 41 CHAPTER 4 RESULTS .................................................................................................. 53 Initial Description of False-Consensus Findings ........................................................ 53 Hypothesis 1................................................................................................................ 56 Hypothesis 2................................................................................................................ 57 CHAPTER 5 DISCUSSION ............................................................................................ 62 Clinical Implications ................................................................................................... 66 Limitations .................................................................................................................. 67 Research Implications ................................................................................................. 68 iv REFERENCES ................................................................................................................. 69 APPENDIX A INSTITUTIONAL REVIEW BOARD NARRATIVE FOR EXEMPT PROTOCOL FOR RELATIONSHIP EXPECTATIONS WITHIN COUPLES ................................................................................................................... 76 APPENDIX B DEMOGRAPHIC QUESTIONS............................................................. 88 APPENDIX C THE RELATIONSHIP BELIEFS SCALE (WITH FALSE CONSENSUS ADAPTATION) ................................................................................. 90 APPENDIX D ATTITUDES TOWARD DIVORCE SCALE (WITH FALSE CONSENSUS ADAPTATION IN PARENTHESES) ............................................. 101 APPENDIX E INFORMATION FOR GIFT CARD DRAWING ................................ 103 APPENDIX F INSTITUTIONAL REVIEW BOARD APPROVAL FOR EXEMPTION ........................................................................................................... 105 APPENDIX G INSTITUTIONAL REVIEW BOARD SECOND APPROVAL FOR EXEMPTIONS ................................................................................................ 106 v LIST OF TABLES Page Table 1 Demographic Information ................................................................................... 38 Table 2 Responses From Partner 1A (John) on Questions 1A and 1B ............................. 45 Table 3 Responses From Partner 1B (Mary) on Questions 1A and 1B ............................ 45 Table 4 Responses From Partner 1A (John) on Questions 2A and 2B ............................. 48 Table 5 Responses From Partner 1B (Mary) on Questions 2A and 2B ............................ 48 Table 6 Responses From Partner 1A (John) on Questions 3A and 3B ............................. 49 Table 7 Responses From Partner 1B (Mary) on Questions 3A and 3B ............................ 49 Table 8 Responses From Partner 1A (John) on Questions 4A and 4B ............................. 50 Table 9 Responses From Partner 1B (Mary) on Questions 4A and 4B ............................ 51 Table 10 Responses From Partner 1A (John) on Questions 5A and 5B ........................... 51 Table 11 Responses From Partner 1B (Mary) on Questions 5A and 5B .......................... 52 Table 12 False Consensus Scores ..................................................................................... 52 Table 13 Description of Responses Given by Individual Members of Couples ................ 55 Table 14 False Consensus in Individual Members of Couples by Relationship Dimension ............................................................................................................. 55 Table 15 Analysis of Covariance for Individual False Consensus Scores ....................... 58 Table 16 Multivariate Analysis of Covariance ................................................................. 59 Table 17 MANCOVA Results (Tests of Between-Subjects Effects) ................................... 60 vi FALSE CONSENSUS IN COUPLES CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION People frequently make assumptions about what others think or believe. These assumptions are often based on their own personal views, beliefs, and opinions. Not surprisingly, their assumptions about others are often incorrect. Part of their mistaken beliefs is due to a generalized tendency of perceivers to overestimate the extent that other people agree with them, a phenomenon known as “false consensus.” Since Ross, Green, and House (1977) first demonstrated it, false consensus has been observed in numerous situations including those involving both hypothetical and actual choices. False consensus also influences opinions and beliefs. Some of these may involve trivial preferences such as the preference for brown over white bread. Others, however, are more serious and involve religious and political preferences. Unlike the former, trivial
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