Attracted to somebody
who is similar to us.
Emphasis on similarity
of personality and
attitudes
First we sort people
for dissimilarity and
they are avoided
Secondly we
pick somebody
who is similar
to us
Bercheid + Reis
Found that people with
similar personality traits to
ourselves were more
attractive + likely to form
relationship
Caspi + Herbener
Found that married couples with similar
personalities were more happier than
couples with less similar personalities
'Attitude alignment'
Partners modify their
attitudes to become
more similar
Crucial that one
or both partners
modify their
attitudes for
relationships to
develop
AO2
Lehr + Geher
Support for the importance of
attitude similarity + reciprocal
attraction
24 males and 32 females were given a description of a stranger
with varying degrees of similarity + whether they liked them or not
Found that similar people were
liked + liking was more likely to
be reciprocated
Shows that similarity in attitudes is a
key factor in relationship formation
However knowing someone likes
you is rewarding so similarity if not
as important in this case
Yoshida
Criticises the
similarity
theory as it
only looks at
attitudes +
personality
Represents only a narrow view
of factors that are important in
relationship formation
Similarity in
self-concept,
economic level
+ physical
condition are
equally
important
Speakman et al.
Found that people
chose partners with a
similar level of body fat
Suggests that the similarity theory fails to
take into account all the factors that
influence the formation of relationships
Rosenbaum
Argue that similarity is not
the most important factor in
determining whether a
relationship will develop
The dissimilarity repulsion
hypothesis states that
dissimilarity is more
important than similarity
Tested in many cultures (e.g.
Singh + Tan in Singapore)
Found that individuals are first attracted
to each other due to similar attitudes. As
they discover more dissimilarities than
similarities the individuals becomes less
attracted the each other
Suggests that dissimilarities are
more significant in determining
relationship formation
Condon + Crano
Supports the
importance of
similarity
We assume that
people similar to us
will be more likely
to like us
By ruling out dissimilar people we
lessen out chances of being rejected
Sharing similar attitudes + beliefs is
rewarding as it validates them
Suggests that similarity is a key
factor in forming relationships