An Atlas of Interpersonal Situations

by Harold H. Kelley , John G. Holmes , Norbert L. Kerr , Harry T. Reis , Caryl E. Rusbult , Paul A. M. Van Lange

• ISBN13: 9780521812528
• ISBN10: 0521812526
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2003-02-03
• Publisher: Cambridge University Press

Summary

The Atlas of Interpersonal Situations provides a systematic theoretical account for understanding the impact of situations on patterns of social interaction. Structured around descriptions of twenty-one of the most common situations that people encounter in everyday life, the authors aim to provide readers with the tools needed to understand how those situations influence interpersonal behavior. These descriptions are intended to be freestanding, each one providing analysis, research examples, and everyday descriptions of the prototypical situation. The authors build upon the tools of interdependence theory, which stresses the manner in which people's outcomes are determined by the structure of their interaction with each other. This analysis makes clear exactly what is 'social' about 'social psychology'.

Table of Contents

Preface	ix
PART ONE. INTRODUCTION AND THEORY
Interpersonal Situations: The Context of Social Behavior	3	(14)
Outcome Interdependence	17	(34)
Interaction Conditions and Person Factors	51	(31)
Exploring the Geography of the Outcome Patterns	82	(47)
PART TWO. THE SITUATIONS
Introduction to the Entries for the Situations	113	(16)
Single-Component Patterns
Independence: We Go Our Separate Ways	129	(13)
Mutual Partner Control: I Scratch Your Back, You Scratch Mine	142	(8)
Corresponding Mutual Joint Control: Getting in Sync	150	(12)
Conflicting Mutual Joint Control: Match or Mismatch	162	(15)
Two- and Three-Component Patterns
The Prisoner's Dilemma: Me versus We	177	(15)
Threat: Trading Loyalty for Justice	192	(11)
Chicken: Death before Dishonor	203	(13)
Hero: Let's Do It Your Way	216	(12)
Conjunctive Problems: Together We Can Do It	228	(11)
Disjunctive Problems: Either of Us Can Do It	239	(10)
Asymmetric Dependence: You're the Boss	249	(22)
Time-Extended Patterns
Iterated Prisoner's Dilemma: United We Stand, Divided We Fall	271	(14)
Investment: Building for the Future	285	(19)
Delay of Gratification: Resisting Temptation	304	(21)
Incomplete Information Situations
Negotiation: Can We Agree on a Deal?	325	(13)
Encounters with Strangers: Lack of Information about a Partner	338	(15)
Joint Decisions under Uncertainty: Bird in the Hand	353	(17)
Twists of Fate: Coping with an Uncertain Future	370	(23)
N-Person Situations
Third Parties: Effects of an Outsider	393	(22)
N-Person Prisoner's Dilemma: Tragedy of the Commons	415	(16)
Movement from One Situation to Another
Movement among Situations: Where Do We Go from Here?	431	(18)
PART THREE. EPILOGUE	449	(12)
References	461	(30)
Author Index	491	(6)
Subject Index	497