Duck’s phase model - theories of RR

    Cards (10)

    • Duck’s phase model of relationships breakdown
      • Duck (1982) proposed a phase model of relationship breakdown
      • He argued that the ending of a relationship goes through 4 distinct phases
      • Each phase is marked by one partner (or both) reaching a ‘threshold’, a point at which their perception of the relationship changes (usually for the worse)
      • The road to break-up begins once a partner realises that they are dissatisfied with the relationship and distressed
      1. Intra-psychic phase
      • Focus of this stage is on cognitive processes occurring within the individual
      • The dissatisfied partner thinks about the reasons for his or her dissatisfaction, focussing mainly on their partner’s shortcomings
      • The dissatisfied partner thinks about these problems privately and may share with a trusted friend
      • They weigh up pros and cons of the relationship and evaluate these against the alternatives
      • They begin to make plans for the future
      • Threshold: “I can’t stand this anymore”, indicating a determination that something has to change
    • 2) Dyadic Phase
      • The focus here is on interpersonal processes between the two partners
      • They cannot avoid talking about the relationship any longer 
      • There is a series of confrontations over a period of time 
      • The relationship is discussed and dissatisfactions are aired
      • These may include anxiety, hostility and complaints about lack of equity
      • There are two possible outcomes: 
      • A determination to continue breaking up (move on to next phase)
      • A renewed desire to repair it
      • Threshold: They eventually come to the conclusion, ‘I would be justified in withdrawing’.
    • 3) Social phase
      • The focus is now on wider processes involving the couple’s social networks
      • The break-up is made public
      • Partners will seek support of friends and family to form a pact
      • Mutual friends find they have to choose a side
      • Gossip is traded and encouraged
      • This is usually the point of no return for the break-up
      • Threshold: The dissatisfied partner concludes, ‘I mean it’.
    • 4) Grave-dressing phase
      • The focus of this phase is on the aftermath
      • Once the relationship is dead, each partner tries to create a more favourable story about the break-up to make themselves look ‘good’ to others
      • This allows partners to save face and maintain a positive reputation, at the expense of the other partner
      • Gossip plays an important role in this phase
      • The dissatisfied partner finally concludes, ‘time to get a new life’.
      • Threshold: ‘It’s now inevitable’.
    • AO3:
      • A criticism of Duck’s original phase model of relationship breakdown is that it ignores an important stage in break-ups
      • Rollie and Duck (2006) modified the phase model to add a fifth phase after grave-dressing – the resurrection phase
      • This is when ex-partners turn their attention to future relationships using experiences gained from their recently ended one
      • This suggests that Duck’s original phase model of relationship breakdown is not a complete explanation of break-ups
    • AO3:
      • A limitation of research relating to Duck’s phase model is that a lot of the research is retrospective
      • For example, participants generally give their experiences of the breakdown process some time after the relationship has ended 
      • This is a problem because what they can recall may not always be accurate or reliable, particularly when recalling the early stages of the break-up
      • This suggests that Duck’s model may lack validity as the research supporting it may not include accurate accounts of relationship breakdown
    • AO3:
      • A limitation of Duck’s model is that it doesn’t actually explain why relationships break down
      • Flemlee’s argues that relationship breakdown is caused by partners getting too much of what they were originally looking for 
      • E.g. They thought their partner had a fantastic sense of humour but over time they got sick and tired of it and now it annoys them
      • This suggests that other theories of relationship breakdown are more useful than Duck’s as they actually explain the possible cause of break-ups rather than just the description of a break-up
    • AO3:
      • A limitation of Duck’s model is that it ignores cultural differences in how relationships are experienced
      • For example, Moghaddam et al. (1993) suggest that in individualist cultures, individuals choose to start a relationship so they can easily and regularly end relationships too
      • However, they suggest that in collectivist cultures individuals do not always choose to start a relationship (e.g. Arranged marriages) so it is a lot harder to end the relationship because they involve the wider family too
    • AO3 continued:
      • This affects the validity of Duck’s model because it may not apply and generalise to the breakdown of relationships in non-Western cultures, because the whole concept of a romantic relationship differs between cultures
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