An Overview (and Underview) of Research and Theory within the Attraction Paradigm

Abstract

The initiation and subsequent development of what I once immodestly labeled `the attraction paradigm' are described. Though an after-the-fact reconstruction of a given program of research and theory may appear to result from planful, rational, insightful, and even prescient actions, the actual process is more often a combination of multiple personal motives, semi-random input from a wide variety of sources, sheer luck, and semi-delusional tenacity. In any event, some highlights and landmarks of over 35 years of attraction research are summarized. The story includes the initial decision to investigate the effect of attitude similarity-dissimilarity on attraction, the gradual development of the linear function that specifies the relationship between seemingly diverse stimulus events and evaluative responses such as attraction, and the construction of a theoretical model that began with a focus on conditioning but was eventually expanded as `the behaviour sequence', incorporating cognitive constructs in order to deal with such interpersonal complexities as love. As a postscript, I describe our current efforts to place the components of adult attachment patterns within this model in an effort to predict more precisely various aspects of interpersonal relationships.