Factors affecting attraction: Self-disclosure

• Self-disclosure refers to revealing personal information about oneself to another person.

  • In romantic relationships, self-disclosure is crucial as it helps build intimacy and trust.
  • Romantic partners reveal more about themselves as the relationship develops, this strengthens the romantic bond.
• Self-disclosure is a major concept of Social Penetration Theory (Altman & Taylor, 1973)

  • Suggests that self-disclosure is a gradual process of revealing more personal information as a relationship develops.
  • Like peeling an onion, relationships progress from superficial topics to intimate details.
  • Reciprocity is important: if one partner shares sensitive information, the other is expected to do the same.
• According to Altman and Taylor, self-disclosure has two elements - breadth and depth.

  • As both of these increase, romantic partners become more committed to each other
• Breadth and Depth of Self-Disclosure

  • Breadth: The range of topics shared (e.g., hobbies, interests).
  • Depth: The level of intimacy in what is shared (e.g., fears, past experiences).
  • Early in relationships, people disclose safe, low-risk information. As trust builds, deeper, more meaningful self-disclosures occur, increasing attraction.
• Reciprocity of Self-Disclosure

  • Reis & Shaver (1988) argue that for self-disclosure to increase attraction, both partners must reciprocate.
  • If one person shares but the other does not, attraction may decrease due to a lack of balance in intimacy.
• One strength is that there is research support. Sprecher and Hendrick (2004) studied heterosexual couples and found that those who engaged in more self-disclosure reported higher levels of intimacy and relationship satisfaction (strong correlation). Similarly, Laurenceau et al. (2005) used a diary study and found that self-disclosure was linked to greater feelings of intimacy in both partners. These findings support the idea that self-disclosure contributes to the development of stronger, more fulfilling relationships, increasing its validity as an explanation for attraction.
• A limitation of self-disclosure research is that findings may not apply to all cultures, as the importance of self-disclosure differs across societies. In Western, individualistic cultures, greater self-disclosure is associated with higher relationship satisfaction. However, research suggests that in collectivist cultures (e.g., China), individuals may disclose less personal information, yet relationships remain equally satisfying (Tang et al., 2013). This suggests that self-disclosure may not be a universal factor in attraction, limiting its generalisability across different cultures.
• A limitation is that correlational research cannot establish causation between self-disclosure and attraction. While studies consistently show a positive relationship between self-disclosure and satisfaction, they do not prove that self-disclosure causes greater attraction. It is possible that couples who are already highly satisfied choose to disclose more, rather than self-disclosure directly improving their relationship. Therefore, the theory may lack explanatory power in determining the true cause of attraction.
• Tang et al. (2013) reviewed literature on sexual self-disclosure (disclosure relating to feelings about specific sexual practices). 

  • They found that men and women in the USA (an individualistic country) self disclosed more sexual thoughts and feelings than those in China (a collectivist culture). 
  • Both these levels of self-disclosure are still linked to relationship satisfaction in both countries.