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Couples' shared participation in novel and arousing activities and experienced relationship quality.
Abstract
Using a newspaper questionnaire, a door-to-door survey, and 3 laboratory experiments, the authors examined a proposed effect of shared participation in novel and arousing activities on experienced relationship quality. The questionnaire and survey studies found predicted correlations of reported shared "exciting" activities and relationship satisfaction plus their predicted mediation by relationship boredom. In all 3 experiments, the authors found predicted greater increases in experienced relationship quality from before to after participating together in a 7-min novel and arousing (vs. a more mundane) task. Comparison with a no-activity control showed the effect was due to the novel-arousing task. The same effect was found on ratings of videotaped discussions before and after the experimental task. Finally, all results remained after controlling for relationship social desirability. Results bear on general issues of boredom and excitement in relationships and the role of such processes in understanding the typical early decline of relationship quality after the honeymoon period.
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“Social play, with its shared amusement, excitement, and smiles, builds lasting social bonds and attachments (Aron, Norman, Aron, McKenna, & Heyman, 2000; Lee, 1983; Simons, McCluskey-Fawcett, & Papini, 1986), which can become the locus of subsequent social support.”
From The role of positive emotions in positive psychology: The broaden-and-build theory of positive emotions. (2001) · cites this paper as Aron, Norman, Aron, McKenna, & Heyman, 2000
In the citing paper
“Being playful, for instance, can build physical resources (Boulton & Smith, 1992), social resources (Aron, Norman, Aron, McKenna, & Heyman, 2000;Lee, 1983), and intellectual resources (Leslie, 1987;Panksepp, 1998).”
From The Undoing Effect of Positive Emotions (2000) · cites this paper as Aron et al., 2000
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“Play also builds enduring social resources: social play, with its shared amusement and smiles, builds lasting social bonds and attachments (Lee 1983; Simons et al. 1986; Aron et al. 2000), which can become the locus of subsequent social support.”
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“An example of research on an appetitive process in close relationships is Aron and colleagues’ work, showing that when couples participate in novel–arousing activities together they report increased relationship quality (Aron et al., 2000).”
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“…excitement” intervention based on theoretical and empirical work in the self-expansion theory tradition (Aron, Norman, Aron, McKenna, & Heyman, 2000; Reissman, Aron, & Bergen, 1993; Tsapelas, Aron, & Orbuch, 2009), provides couples with ideas for…”
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Self-citationMarital Boredom Now Predicts Less Satisfaction 9 Years Later
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“…public suggest that another problem faced in long-term marriages may be simple boredom, the lack of excitement; laboratory and shortterm field experiments suggest a causal effect of reducing boredom (by shared participation in exciting activities) on relationship quality (e.g., Aron et al., 2000).”
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“Similarly, Aron et al. (2000) argue that shared activities in which participantsmight engage together are likely to involve cooperation, thus facilitating a sense of affection and closeness.”
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“Activities that result in self-expansion have been traditionally defined as novel, exciting, challenging, and interesting (Aron & Aron, 1997; Aron, Mashek, et al., 2004; Aron et al., 2000), yet classic self-expansion research has examined activities (i.”
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“Specifically, these results suggest that one way to bolster a client’s self-efficacy for tasks would be to have him or her experience self-expansion, potentially through self-expanding activities (e.g., Aron et al., 2000).”
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“Moments of shared laughter may be another such feature of high quality relationships that makes people feel they have the resources necessary to explore and grow, both together and individually (also see Aron et al., 2000).”
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“People were most likely to report coping with boredom with relationship-enhancing strategies aimed at increasing self-expansion through novel and stimulation (Aron et al., 2000).”
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Heyman, R. E., Lorber, M. F., Eddy, J. M., & West, T. V. (2014) · Cambridge University Press eBooks · doi:10.1017/cbo9780511996481.018 · Cited by 100
Self-citation“Date nights” take two: The maintenance function of shared relationship activities
Girme, Y. U., Overall, N. C., & Faingataa, S. (2013) · Personal Relationships · doi:10.1111/pere.12020 · Cited by 91
When People Serve as Means to Goals
Orehek, E., & Forest, A. L. (2016) · Current Directions in Psychological Science · doi:10.1177/0963721415623536 · Cited by 95
MacDonald, G., Locke, K. D., Spielmann, S. S., & Joel, S. (2012) · Journal of Social and Personal Relationships · doi:10.1177/0265407512465221 · Cited by 90
“Of course, a body of research has centered on relationship rewards, such as closeness and intimacy (e.g., Aron et al., 2000), but there are very few studies that examine the simultaneous operation of threats and rewards in romantic relationship contexts (e.g., Lewandowski & Ackerman, 2006;…”
BackgroundBecoming a sexual being: The “elephant in the room” of adolescent brain development
Suleiman, A. B., Galván, A., Harden, K. P., & Dahl, R. E. (2017) · Developmental Cognitive Neuroscience · doi:10.1016/j.dcn.2016.09.004 · Cited by 89
“Once this partner-specific response has been established, engaging in arousing, novel activities creates enhanced experiences of relationship satisfaction among couples (Aron et al., 2000).”
Cognitive emotion regulation and positive dyadic outcomes in married couples
Rusu, P., Bodenmann, G., & Kayser, K. (2019) · Journal of Social and Personal Relationships · doi:10.1177/0265407517751664 · Cited by 76
The reliability of romantic love: A reliability generalization meta‐analysis
Graham, J. M., & CHRISTIANSEN, K. (2009) · Personal Relationships · doi:10.1111/j.1475-6811.2009.01209.x · Cited by 86
Satisfaction and Happiness – The Bright Side of Quality of Life
Tay, L., Kuykendall, L. E., & Diener, E. (2014) · Springer eBooks · doi:10.1007/978-94-017-9178-6_39 · Cited by 92
Beyond Satisfaction: The Role of Attachment in Marital Functioning
Selçuk, E., Zayas, V., & Hazan, C. (2010) · Journal of Family Theory & Review · doi:10.1111/j.1756-2589.2010.00061.x · Cited by 108
Kohut, T., Balzarini, R. N., Fisher, W. A., & Campbell, L. (2018) · Journal of Social and Personal Relationships · doi:10.1177/0265407517743096 · Cited by 83
The Affective Structure of Marriage
Caughlin, J. P., & Huston, T. L. (2006) · Cambridge University Press eBooks · doi:10.1017/cbo9780511606632.009 · Cited by 83
Kashdan, T. B., DeWall, C. N., Pond, R. S., Silvia, P. J., Lambert, N. M., Fincham, F. D., Farmer, A. S., & Keller, P. S. (2012) · Journal of Personality · doi:10.1111/j.1467-6494.2012.00783.x · Cited by 85
Vleet, M. V., & Feeney, B. C. (2015) · Perspectives on Psychological Science · doi:10.1177/1745691615596789 · Cited by 88
Kashdan, T. B., McKnight, P. E., Fincham, F. D., & Rose, P. (2010) · Journal of Personality · doi:10.1111/j.1467-6494.2010.00697.x · Cited by 88
“That is, dispositional curiosity might facilitate the self-expansion process in relationship beginnings and the maintenance of passionate excitement in long-term relationships (Aron et al., 2000; Carson, Carson, Gil, & Baucom, 2007; Graham, 2008).”
Knowing Who You Are and Adding to It
Emery, L. F., Walsh, C., & Slotter, E. B. (2014) · Social Psychological and Personality Science · doi:10.1177/1948550614555029 · Cited by 81
“These changes often benefit well-being (Aron et al., 1995, 2000; Mattingly & Lewandowski, 2013b).”
BackgroundTsapelas, I., Fisher, H. E., & Aron, A. P. (2010) · doi:10.4324/9780203874370-12 · Cited by 76
Self-citationDoes Consumer Well‐Being Affect Hedonic Consumption?
Zhong, J. Y., & Mitchell, V. (2012) · Psychology and Marketing · doi:10.1002/mar.20545 · Cited by 82
“Joy might also prompt consumers to be active in social groups and social activities, which in turn improves their long-lasting social connections and social-affective skills (Aron et al., 2000; Boulton & Smith, 1992; Ellsworth & Smith, 1988; Frijda, 1986).”
Background
Metadata
- Authors
- Aron, A., Norman, C. C., Aron, E. N., McKenna, C., & Heyman, R. E.
- Affiliations
- Stony Brook University (US)
- Kaiser Permanente (US)
- Venue
- Journal of Personality and Social Psychology
- Published
- 2000
- Volume
- 78
- Issue
- 2
- Pages
- 273-284
- ISSN
- 0022-3514 (ISSN-L)
- 1939-1315
- OpenAlex
- W2076102104
- Cited by
- 681
- References
- 56
- Citations by year
- 2026: 21 · 2025: 43 · 2024: 21 · 2023: 25 · 2022: 29 · 2021: 28 · 2020: 137 · 2019: 40 · 2018: 38 · 2017: 27 · 2016: 32 · 2015: 39 · 2014: 29 · 2013: 20 · 2012: 22
- FWCI
- 8.09
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- closed
- Locations
- Journal of Personality and Social Psychology (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Topics
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Social Psychology › Attachment and Relationship Dynamics
- Social Sciences › Sociology and Political Science › Marriage and Sexual Relationships
- Social Sciences › Demography › Family Dynamics and Relationships
- Keywords
- couples, relationship quality, relationship satisfaction, shared activities, romantic relationships, honeymoon period, relationship decline, social desirability
- MeSH terms
- Adolescent, Adult, Arousal, Boredom, Exploratory Behavior, Female, Humans, Male, Marriage, Middle Aged, Surveys and Questionnaires, Social Behavior, Spouses
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