An Interdependence Theoretic Analysis of Behavioral Affirmation and the Michelangelo Phenomenon

University Of North Carolina At Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill NC

Investigators

Abstract

People pursue a variety of life goals, seeking to move closer to their "ideal selves" by succeeding professionally, acquiring material possessions, developing desirable dispositions and abilities, and improving their physical and spiritual selves. Such goal pursuits do not transpire in a vacuum. Human dispositions, motives, and behavioral tendencies are fashioned at least in part by interpersonal experience. Among the many forces that shape the self, few if any "sculptors" exert effects as powerful as those of our close partners. Such effects can vary from exceedingly positive to exceedingly negative: Some close partners help bring out the best in each other, supporting and promoting one another's goal pursuits, whereas others either fail to do so or bring out the worst in each other. This project identifies a process termed the "Michelangelo phenomenon," a congenial pattern of interdependence whereby close partners sculpt one another in such a manner as to bring each person closer to his or her ideal self. A key variable in this process is "partner affirmation," or the degree to which a partner's perceptions of and behavior toward the self are congruent with the self's ideal. Partner affirmation has been shown to be associated not only with greater personal growth (movement toward the ideal self) and enhanced personal well-being, but also with adjustment and vitality in ongoing relationships. This project explores several previously unexamined components of this phenomenon by continuing a longitudinal study of ongoing marital relationships.