Concept training for this debate

According to foundational relationship metrics, what term describes the lowest level of relational outcomes an individual will accept when considering available opportunities, including being single?

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• A.Comparison Level for Alternatives
• B.Comparison Level
• C.Relationship Satisfaction Index
• D.Sunk Cost Fallacy

Which structural metric calculates the proportion of actual connections out of all potential connections within a peer group to determine its overall cohesion?

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• A.Dunbar's Number
• B.Network Density
• C.Network Centrality
• D.Social Capital

According to recent studies, exposure to unattached peers triggers which unconscious psychological mechanism that increases vigilance and reduces primary partnership investment?

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• A.Fear of Missing Out (FOMO)
• B.Mate-value self-assessment
• C.Mate-guarding mechanisms
• D.Social Contagion Theory

Under Rusbult's Investment Model (Rusbult 1980), if satisfaction and investment remain constant, how does a sudden increase in the perceived quality of alternatives mathematically affect overall relationship commitment?

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• A.It increases commitment by triggering a contrast effect that highlights the current partner's strengths.
• B.It has no effect because high satisfaction and high investment act as an absolute shield against outside temptations.
• C.It shifts the individual's psychological profile from a secure attachment style to an anxious attachment style.
• D.It decreases overall commitment because the model calculates commitment by subtracting the quality of alternatives from the sum of satisfaction and investments.

According to Interdependence Theory (Thibaut & Kelley 1959), the hedonistic calculus used to evaluate relationship outcomes against external baselines breaks down under which specific behavioral condition?

• A.When individuals engage in a transformation of motivation, prioritizing the partner's well-being over their own immediate rewards.
• B.When the Comparison Level exactly equals the Comparison Level for Alternatives.
• C.When couples experience intense emotional conflicts or arguments.
• D.When a couple merges their financial assets and signs a legally binding contract.

Based on Bott's Hypothesis of Social Networks (Bott 1957), the assumption that close-knit networks enforce traditional role segregation is most likely to fail in which type of modern environment?

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• A.In all modern marriages because traditional gender roles have been completely eradicated by contemporary culture.
• B.In loose-knit networks characterized by high geographic mobility and disconnected friends.
• C.In dual-income households that rely on digital calendar sharing to manage daily tasks.
• D.In highly dense but progressive urban networks where the community's shared norms explicitly enforce egalitarianism.

How does the pervasive nature of social media and dating apps theoretically alter an individual's Comparison Level for Alternatives (CLalt) even without the active pursuit of single friends?

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• A.By lowering the individual's Comparison Level (CL) so they expect less from their current partner.
• B.By artificially inflating the perceived availability and quality of potential partners through curated, frictionless exposure.
• C.By directly causing infidelity and cheating in relationships that would otherwise be perfectly happy.
• D.By reducing the amount of face-to-face communication time couples spend together in the evenings.

In an era emphasizing individual self-actualization, how might a couple's reliance on diverse friendship networks for emotional support affect their interdependence and dyadic stability?

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• A.It inevitably destroys romantic intimacy because true soulmates should be able to fulfill all of each other's emotional needs.
• B.It decreases stability by creating competing emotional attachments that slowly replace the primary romantic bond.
• C.It can increase dyadic stability by reducing the emotional burden placed on the primary partner, thereby preventing relationship burnout.
• D.It alters the couple's financial interdependence by increasing the amount of money spent on separate social outings.

While Rusbult's Investment Model (Rusbult 1980) assumes conscious evaluation of alternatives, Mate Retention Theory (Buss 1988) diverges by attributing relationship-preserving behaviors to which underlying mechanism?

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• A.The rational calculation of sunk emotional costs accumulated over the duration of the partnership.
• B.Unconscious evolutionary adaptations triggered by perceived threats to reproductive success and mate poaching.
• C.The conscious, practical desire to avoid the financial and logistical nightmares of a breakup.
• D.The influence of childhood attachment trauma that creates an overwhelming fear of adult abandonment.

How does Interdependence Theory (Thibaut & Kelley 1959) differ from Bott's Hypothesis of Social Networks (Bott 1957) regarding the primary unit of analysis when evaluating relationship stability?

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• A.Interdependence Theory focuses on the internal dyadic exchange of costs and rewards, while Bott focuses on the external structure of the couple's peer network.
• B.Interdependence Theory examines broader cultural norms, while Bott examines the internal psychological traits of the individuals.
• C.Interdependence Theory focuses on the emotional depth of romantic love, while Bott focuses on the financial stability of the household.
• D.Interdependence Theory relies exclusively on longitudinal surveys, while Bott relies on cross-sectional laboratory experiments.