The self-fulfilling prophecy in close relationships: Rejection sensitivity and rejection by romantic partners.
Abstract
The authors hypothesized a self-fulfilling prophecy wherein rejection expectancies lead people to behave in ways that elicit rejection from their dating partners. The hypothesis was tested in 2 studies of conflict in couples: (a) a longitudinal field study where couples provided daily-diary reports and (b) a lab study involving behavioral observations. Results from the field study showed that high rejection-sensitive (HRS) people's relationships were more likely to break up than those of low rejection-sensitive (LRS) people. Conflict processes that contribute to relationship erosion were revealed for HRS women but not for HRS men. Following naturally occurring relationship conflicts, HRS women's partners were more rejecting than were LRS women's partners. The lab study showed that HRS women's negative behavior during conflictual discussions helped explain their partners' more rejecting postconflict responses.
Integrity signals
Registry
Cites
Statistics
Claims the paper makes
Claims other papers make about this one
Each is checked against this paper’s own text: does it say what the citing paper says it does?
Anticipation of rejection may lead to a self-fulfilling prophecy in which individuals behave out of fear, thereby creating a situation that elicits rejection from others and in which the previous fears are confirmed.
“This anticipation may lead to a self-fulfilling prophecy in which individuals behave out of fear, thereby creating a situation that elicits rejection from others and in which the previous fears are confirmed (Downey, Freitas, Michaelis, & Khouri, 1998).”
From Associations between rejection sensitivity and mental health outcomes: A meta-analytic review (2017) · cites this paper as Downey, Freitas, Michaelis, & Khouri, 1998
Self-fulfilling prophecies can be pernicious when the beliefs at the center capture negative social conceptions, such as stereotypes, anxious expectations, fear, or hostility.
“Importantly, SFPs can be pernicious when the beliefs at the center of them capture negative social conceptions, for instance, stereotypes, anxious expectations, fear, or hostility (Darley and Gross 1983;Downey et al. 1998;Madon et al. 2018).”
From What Is the Function of Confirmation Bias? (2022) · cites this paper as Downey et al. 1998
Cites
Attachment and Loss. Vol. 1. Attachment
Rever, G. W. (1972) · Psychosomatic Medicine · doi:10.1097/00006842-197211000-00011 · Cited by 8,446 · see citing works
Mischel, W., & Shoda, Y. (1995) · Psychological Review · doi:10.1037/0033-295x.102.2.246 · Cited by 3,889 · see citing works
Rejection Sensitivity and Children's Interpersonal Difficulties
Downey, G., Lebolt, A., Rincón, C., & Freitas, A. L. (1998) · Child Development · doi:10.1111/j.1467-8624.1998.tb06161.x · Cited by 417 · see citing works
Self-citation
Flagged first, then by citations
Cited by
Sorted by citations
How does sexual minority stigma “get under the skin”? A psychological mediation framework
Hatzenbuehler, M. L. (2009) · Psychological Bulletin · doi:10.1037/a0016441 · Cited by 2,695 · see citing works
Williams, K. D. (2007) · Annual Review of Psychology · doi:10.1146/annurev.psych.58.110405.085641 · Cited by 1,828 · see citing works
TARGET ARTICLE: Toward a Conceptualization of Optimal Self-Esteem
Kernis, M. H. (2003) · Psychological Inquiry · doi:10.1207/s15327965pli1401_01 · Cited by 1,683 · see citing works
The Costly Pursuit of Self-Esteem
Crocker, J., & Park, L. E. (2004) · Psychological Bulletin · doi:10.1037/0033-2909.130.3.392 · Cited by 1,402 · see citing works
Interdependence, Interaction, and Relationships
Rusbult, C. E., & Van Lange, P. A. M. (2003) · Annual Review of Psychology · doi:10.1146/annurev.psych.54.101601.145059 · Cited by 1,235 · see citing works
A Multicomponent Conceptualization of Authenticity: Theory and Research
Kernis, M. H., & Goldman, B. M. (2006) · Advances in Experimental Social Psychology · doi:10.1016/s0065-2601(06)38006-9 · Cited by 1,244 · see citing works
Adolescent Romantic Relationships
Collins, W. A., Welsh, D. P., & Furman, W. (2009) · Annual Review of Psychology · doi:10.1146/annurev.psych.60.110707.163459 · Cited by 1,044 · see citing works
Smart Richman, L., & Leary, M. R. (2009) · Psychological Review · doi:10.1037/a0015250 · Cited by 942 · see citing works
Getting a cue: the need to belong and enhanced sensitivity to social cues
Pickett, C. L., Gardner, W. L., & Knowles, M. (2004) · Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin · doi:10.1177/0146167203262085 · Cited by 862 · see citing works
Construct validity of the need to belong scale: mapping the nomological network
Leary, M. R., Kelly, K. M., Cottrell, C. A., & Schreindorfer, L. S. (2013) · Journal of Personality Assessment · doi:10.1080/00223891.2013.819511 · Cited by 855 · see citing works
The Relationship Context of Human Behavior and Development
Reis, H. T., Collins, W. A., & Berscheid, E. (2000) · Psychological Bulletin · doi:10.1037/0033-2909.126.6.844 · Cited by 853 · see citing works
Perceptions of Conflict and Support in Romantic Relationships: The Role of Attachment Anxiety
Campbell, L., Simpson, J. A., Boldry, J., & Kashy, D. A. (2005) · Journal of Personality and Social Psychology · doi:10.1037/0022-3514.88.3.510 · Cited by 725 · see citing works
Regulating the interpersonal self: Strategic self-regulation for coping with rejection sensitivity.
Ayduk, O., Mendoza-Denton, R., Mischel, W., Downey, G., Peake, P. K., & Rodriguez, M. (2000) · Journal of Personality and Social Psychology · doi:10.1037/0022-3514.79.5.776 · Cited by 669 · see citing works
Self-citationGood news! Capitalizing on positive events in an interpersonal context
Gable, S. L., & Reis, H. T. (2010) · Advances in Experimental Social Psychology · doi:10.1016/s0065-2601(10)42004-3 · Cited by 454 · see citing works
Social causes and consequences of rejection sensitivity
London, B., Downey, G., Bonica, C., & Paltin, I. (2007) · Journal of Research on Adolescence · doi:10.1111/j.1532-7795.2007.00531.x · Cited by 445 · see citing works
Self-citationExtension of the rejection sensitivity construct to the interpersonal functioning of gay men
Pachankis, J. E., Goldfried, M. R., & Ramrattan, M. E. (2008) · Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology · doi:10.1037/0022-006x.76.2.306 · Cited by 413 · see citing works
Rejection Sensitivity and Children's Interpersonal Difficulties
Downey, G., Lebolt, A., Rincón, C., & Freitas, A. L. (1998) · Child Development · doi:10.1111/j.1467-8624.1998.tb06161.x · Cited by 417 · see citing works
Self-citationDiamond, L. M., & Alley, J. (2022) · Neuroscience & Biobehavioral Reviews · doi:10.1016/j.neubiorev.2022.104720 · Cited by 412 · see citing works
From a distance: Implications of spontaneous self-distancing for adaptive self-reflection.
Ayduk, Ö., & Kross, E. (2010) · Journal of Personality and Social Psychology · doi:10.1037/a0019205 · Cited by 347 · see citing works
Rejection sensitivity and disruption of attention by social threat cues
Berenson, K. R., Gyurak, A., Ayduk, Ö., Downey, G., Garner, M. J., Mogg, K., Bradley, B. P., & Pine, D. S. (2009) · Journal of Research in Personality · doi:10.1016/j.jrp.2009.07.007 · Cited by 344 · see citing works
Seiffge-Krenke, I. (2003) · International Journal of Behavioral Development · doi:10.1080/01650250344000145 · Cited by 334 · see citing works
Associations between rejection sensitivity and mental health outcomes: A meta-analytic review
Gao, S., Assink, M., Cipriani, A., & Lin, K. (2017) · Clinical Psychology Review · doi:10.1016/j.cpr.2017.08.007 · Cited by 330 · see citing works
Rejection sensitivity and the rejection-hostility link in romantic relationships
Romero‐Canyas, R., Downey, G., Berenson, K., Ayduk, O., & Kang, N. J. (2010) · Journal of Personality · doi:10.1111/j.1467-6494.2009.00611.x · Cited by 297 · see citing works
Self-citationRieger, E., Van Buren, D. J., Bishop, M., Tanofsky-Kraff, M., Welch, R., & Wilfley, D. E. (2010) · Clinical Psychology Review · doi:10.1016/j.cpr.2010.02.001 · Cited by 279 · see citing works
Downey, G., Mougios, V., Ayduk, O., London, B. E., & Shoda, Y. (2004) · Psychological Science · doi:10.1111/j.0956-7976.2004.00738.x · Cited by 264 · see citing works
Excessive reassurance seeking, depression, and interpersonal rejection: A meta-analytic review.
Starr, L. R., & Davila, J. (2008) · Journal of Abnormal Psychology · doi:10.1037/a0013866 · Cited by 251 · see citing works
Neural Dynamics of Rejection Sensitivity
Kross, E., Egner, T., Ochsner, K., Hirsch, J., & Downey, G. (2007) · Journal of Cognitive Neuroscience · doi:10.1162/jocn.2007.19.6.945 · Cited by 225 · see citing works
Self-citationAyduk, Ö., Gyurak, A., & Luerssen, A. (2008) · Journal of Experimental Social Psychology · doi:10.1016/j.jesp.2007.07.004 · Cited by 223 · see citing works
Rejection sensitivity, social withdrawal, and loneliness in young adults
WATSON, J., & NESDALE, D. (2012) · Journal of Applied Social Psychology · doi:10.1111/j.1559-1816.2012.00927.x · Cited by 218 · see citing works
Impett, E. A., Gordon, A. M., Kogan, A., Oveis, C., Gable, S. L., & Keltner, D. (2010) · Journal of Personality and Social Psychology · doi:10.1037/a0020271 · Cited by 202 · see citing works
Rejection sensitivity and executive control: Joint predictors of borderline personality features
Ayduk, Ö., Zayas, V., Downey, G., Cole, A. B., Shoda, Y., & Mischel, W. (2008) · Journal of Research in Personality · doi:10.1016/j.jrp.2007.04.002 · Cited by 178 · see citing works
Self-citationRejection Sensitivity and Adolescent Girls' Vulnerability to Relationship-Centered Difficulties
Purdie, V., & Downey, G. (2000) · Child Maltreatment · doi:10.1177/1077559500005004005 · Cited by 166 · see citing works
Self-citationWhat Is the Function of Confirmation Bias?
Peters, U. (2022) · Erkenntnis · doi:10.1007/s10670-020-00252-1 · Cited by 163 · see citing works
Demircioğlu, Z. I., & Göncü Köse, A. (2021) · Current Psychology · doi:10.1007/s12144-018-9956-x · Cited by 128 · see citing works
Chango, J. M., McElhaney, K. B., Allen, J. P., Schad, M. M., & Marston, E. (2012) · Journal of Abnormal Child Psychology · doi:10.1007/s10802-011-9570-y · Cited by 122 · see citing works
Rejection Sensitivity and Social Outcomes of Young Adult Men With ADHD
Canu, W. H., & Carlson, C. L. (2007) · Journal of Attention Disorders · doi:10.1177/1087054706288106 · Cited by 113 · see citing works
Resting respiratory sinus arrhythmia buffers against rejection sensitivity via emotion control
Gyurak, A., & Ayduk, Ö. (2008) · Emotion · doi:10.1037/1528-3542.8.4.458 · Cited by 106 · see citing works
Rowe, S. L., Gembeck, M. J. Z., Rudolph, J., & Nesdale, D. (2015) · Journal of Abnormal Child Psychology · doi:10.1007/s10802-014-9966-6 · Cited by 95 · see citing works
Miano, A., Fertuck, E. A., Arntz, A., & Stanley, B. (2013) · Journal of Personality Disorders · doi:10.1521/pedi_2013_27_096 · Cited by 94 · see citing works
Rejection sensitivity and depression: mediation by stress generation
Liu, R. T., Kraines, M. A., Massing-Schaffer, M., & Alloy, L. B. (2014) · Psychiatry: Interpersonal and Biological Processes · doi:10.1521/psyc.2014.77.1.86 · Cited by 79 · see citing works
Berenson, K. R., & Andersen, S. M. (2006) · Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin · doi:10.1177/0146167206291671 · Cited by 72 · see citing works
Approach and avoidance behavior in interpersonal relationships
Gable, S. L., & Gosnell, C. L. (2013) · Emotion Review · doi:10.1177/1754073913477513 · Cited by 70 · see citing works
Hepp, J., Lane, S. P., Carpenter, R. W., Niedtfeld, I., Brown, W. C., & Trull, T. J. (2017) · Clinical Psychological Science · doi:10.1177/2167702616677312 · Cited by 64 · see citing works
PARK, L. E., SANCHEZ, D. T., & BRYNILDSEN, K. (2011) · Journal of Applied Social Psychology · doi:10.1111/j.1559-1816.2011.00769.x · Cited by 60 · see citing works
Ayduk, Ö., & Gyurak, A. (2008) · Social and Personality Psychology Compass · doi:10.1111/j.1751-9004.2008.00143.x · Cited by 60 · see citing works
Experiential avoidance and interpersonal problems: A moderated mediation model
Gerhart, J. I., Baker, C. N., Hoerger, M., & Ronan, G. F. (2014) · Journal of Contextual Behavioral Science · doi:10.1016/j.jcbs.2014.08.003 · Cited by 59 · see citing works
Nikitin, J., & Freund, A. M. (2015) · Journal of Personality · doi:10.1111/jopy.12086 · Cited by 30 · see citing works
Meaning through attachment: an integrative framework
Dewitte, L., Granqvist, P., & Dezutter, J. (2019) · Psychological Reports · doi:10.1177/0033294118799739 · Cited by 23 · see citing works
Quinlan, E., Deane, F. P., & Crowe, T. (2018) · Journal of Contextual Behavioral Science · doi:10.1016/j.jcbs.2018.06.006 · Cited by 22 · see citing works
- Authors
- Downey, G., Freitas, A. L., Michaelis, B., & Khouri, H.
- Affiliations
- Columbia University (US)
- ORCID
- Downey, Geraldine
- Venue
- Journal of Personality and Social Psychology
- Published
- 1998
- Volume
- 75
- Issue
- 2
- Pages
- 545-560
- ISSN
- 0022-3514 (ISSN-L)
- 1939-1315
- OpenAlex
- W4243781437
- Cited by
- 719
- References
- 3
- Citations by year
- 2026: 17 · 2025: 19 · 2024: 18 · 2023: 22 · 2022: 15 · 2021: 31 · 2020: 28 · 2019: 27 · 2018: 42 · 2017: 36 · 2016: 40 · 2015: 51 · 2014: 51 · 2013: 41 · 2012: 34
- FWCI
- 14.53
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- closed
- Locations
- Journal of Personality and Social Psychology (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Funders
- National Institutes of Health (1r29mh051113-01)
- National Institute of Mental Health (R29-MH51113)
- Topics
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Social Psychology › Death Anxiety and Social Exclusion
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Social Psychology › Attachment and Relationship Dynamics
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Clinical Psychology › Personality Traits and Psychology
- Keywords
- self-fulfilling prophecy, close relationships, rejection sensitivity, romantic partners, partner rejection, interpersonal rejection, romantic relationships
- MeSH terms
- Adult, Cognition, Conflict, Psychological, Female, Follow-Up Studies, Humans, Interpersonal Relations, Love, Male, Surveys and Questionnaires, Rejection, Psychology
About these checks
Registry, retraction, Cites and statistics results are computed, not judged, with one exception: a printed reference that no index lists is read once by a model before it counts as a citation error. Claims are extracted by a model and kept only when their quote appears verbatim in the text; each cited source is then checked, with a model’s help, for whether it says what the claim relies on. Those verdicts can be wrong — read the claim’s quote and the cited source before relying on one.
Statistics and arithmetic are recomputed, not judged.
Confidence bands are shown only for fields calibrated on our annotated test set. None is calibrated yet, so no band is shown.
What counts as a claim ›How we measure confidence ›How we check this ›
Are you an author, or do you see a problem with this page? Request a review