Filter theory: Factors affecting attraction

• Who developed filter theory?

  Kerckhoff and Davis
• Explains attraction in terms of attitudes and personalities:

  1. First were consider the field of availables (pool of potential partners who are accessible to us)
  2. From this we select the field of desirables via three filters of varying importance at different stages of a relationship
• What are the two fields?

  Field of availables and field of desirables
• What are the three filter levels?

  1. Social demography
  2. Similarity in attitudes
  3. Complementarity
• Social demography (1st level):

  Demographics are features that describe populations; social demographics include geographical location and social class. You are more likely to meet and have meaningful encounters with people who are physically close ad share other features with yourself (e.g. same social class). Anyone who is too 'different' (too far away, too middle class) is not a potential partner and is 'filtered out' before the next stage
• Similarity in attitudes (2nd level):

  Sharing beliefs and values is important to the development of romantic relationships only for couples who have been together less than 18 months. In the early stages of a relationship, agreeing of basic values promotes better communication and self-disclosure
• Similarity in attitudes (2nd level):

  Byrne found that similarity in attitudes causes mutual attraction

  Where such similarity does not exist it is found that often the relationship fades after only a few dates
• Complementarity (3rd level):

  Partner's meeting each others needs

  Partners complement each other when they have traits that the other lacks

  For example, one partner may enjoy making the other laugh, and in turn this partner enjoys being made to laugh
• Complementarity (3rd level):

  Complementarity is thought to give the romantic partners a feeling of togetherness and 'making a whole'

  For example, partners will feel like they are meeting each other's needs if one likes nurturing (caring for and looking after another) and the other enjoys being looked after
• Limitation: lack of temporal validity

  As the dating world has changed and moved increasingly online, social demography had taken on less importance. For example, the likelihood of dating someone outside our culture has increased. This is not predicted by the initial level of filtering in the model. These social changes in dating bring into question the temporal validity of filter theory as a factor in attraction
• Strength: research support

  Winch found that similarities of personality, interests and attitudes between partners are typical of the early stages of a relationship but complementarity of needs increases in importance. This supports at least two of the filters proposed in filter theory and also suggests that the filters may determine the development of the relationship. This means that the validity of the theory has been supported in surveys of actual relationships
• Limitation: complementarity may not be more important than similarity

  Anderson et al. found that similarity does increase over time but complementarity is not a feature in all relationships. David and Result discovered an attitude alignment in longer-term relationships, again suggesting that similarity is an effect of initial attraction and not the cause. This suggests that the complementarity filter may not be reached in the case of all relationships and therefore the validity of filter theory is questioned
• Limitation: direction of effect

  Anderson et al. found hat cohabiting partners experiences emotional convergence, becoming more similar over time. Furthermore, David and Rusbult suggest that attitude alignment also takes place (i.e. their attitudes change to become more similar to each others). This evidence suggests that similarities are the effect of having a relationship rather than the cause, as suggested by filter theory