Citation

Cavallo JV, Fitzsimons GM, Holmes JG. Person. Soc. Psychol. Bull. 2009; 35(6): 737-751.

Affiliation

University of Waterloo.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2009, SAGE Publishing)

DOI

10.1177/0146167209332742

PMID

19307432

Abstract

Four studies examine the hypothesis that goals adopted by high and low self-esteem people (HSEs and LSEs) to manage risk in romantic relationships may reflect global shifts in approach motivation and subsequently affect risk taking in nonsocial domains. In Studies 1 and 2, threats to participants' romantic relationships heightened HSEs' self-reported general approach motivation while lowering LSEs' approach motivation. In Studies 2 through 4, HSEs exhibited riskier decision making (i.e., a greater tendency to pursue rewards and ignore risks) in nonsocial domains following a relationship threat manipulation whereas LSEs made more conservative decisions. These results suggest that the romantic risk regulation may be inherently linked to a broader approach and avoidance system and that specific risk regulation behaviors may be driven by global motivational shifts to a greater degree than previously theorized.

Language: en