The purpose of this study was to investigate the combined effects of the two personality constructs of field dependence and locus of control on self-disclosure. This area was previously unresearched in terms of examining the utility of these two constructs as predictors of willingness to self-disclose. Subjects were placed into the congruent (field independent-internal; field dependent-external) group or the incongruent (field independent-external; field dependent-internal) group on the basis of scoring either in the upper or lower thirds of the distribution of their scores on the personality measures. The effects of the congruent group were compared to the effects of the incongruent group on total self-disclosure scores on the Self-Disclosure Situations Survey, indicating willingness to self-disclose. A two-way analysis of variance revealed no significant difference between the congruent and incongruent groups on self-disclosure. It was concluded that the congruence - incongruence dimension was not an accurate predictor of willingness to self-disclose. It was-recommended that research be continued using the congruence - incongruence dimension on self-disclosure and that a behavioral measure of self-disclosure be incorporated into the experimental design.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Oklahoma, 1977. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 43-49).

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Wisconsin--Madison, 1973. / Typescript. Vita. eContent provider-neutral record in process. Description based on print version record. Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (M.A.)--Eastern Illinois University. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 37-42).

Note:

Previous studies of help-givers have stressed subjects' perceptions using nine generic problem areas and a list of 100 descriptive adjectives. The present study attempted to specify major personality variables entering into subjects' perceptions of adviser, high school counselor, college counselor, counseling psychologist, clinical psychologist, and psychiatrist. The personality variables of self-disclosure and risk were studied, as well as a comparison using the 100 descriptive adjectives. The results from 217 female undergraduate college students indicated that subjects revealed risky information to help-givers in the same manner that they tended to self-disclose. Findings also revealed that subjects tended to differentiate among help-givers in reference to the extent that they were willing to reveal risky information. Favorable findings with reference to validity for the Norton risk scale are discussed, as are discrepancies between descriptions of help-givers in the current study as opposed to descriptions of the same help-givers in previous studies.

An attempt was made to determine empirically the structure of self-disclosure. Based on the literature, a list of statements relating to the rating of self-disclosure was assembled. This list was condensed into dimensions by two evaluators, working independently. The dimensions were then used to score transcripts of male undergraduate students' verbal self-disclosures. Factor analyses of these scores produced four factors relating to self-focus, intimacy or depth, risk taking, and amount. A tentative fifth factor, intimacy value of disclosure topic, was also found. Regression analysis of dimensions on the Doster (1971) Disclosure Rating Scale produced three tentative scales for measuring self-disclosure. The first scale utilized stepwise regression of all dimensions, the second used stepwise regression of mechanical dimensions, and the third regression used composite scales representing the factors of the orthogonal factor analysis. For each scale, only three dimensions were included in the regression equation.

No description available.

published_or_final_version / Social Work / Master / Master of Social Work

Swinging is a lifestyle choice where members of a couple seek out other couples or sometimes singles, with whom to engage in sexual activity. Swinging is a lifestyle associated with the 1960s and 1970s, but Americans still engage in swinging activities today. Because of stigmas associated with this practice, swinging couples often keep their lifestyle concealed from family and friends. These couples have a unique lifestyle that requires strong communication and boundary management styles. Scholars use communication privacy management theory to examine how individuals or couples disclose private information and how this private information is then co-owned by both parties. The purpose of this study was to understand whom swinging couples disclose their lifestyle to, and what risks the couple experienced from the disclosures. The swingers disclosed to friends in most cases and were concerned about risks of stigma, privacy, and relationship termination. In this exploratory study I showed that swingers’ privacy management seems to align with the components of CPM in concealing or revealing their lifestyle to others. However the findings also indicate that swingers utilize self-disclosure for recruitment into the lifestyle, and that the disclosures seem to be more spontaneous then strategic. Future research should look further into the privacy management of swingers, as well as other ways in which they manage their stigmatized identities.