The aim of this study was to describe false consensus in romantically involved couples. False consensus is the tendency of the perceiver to overestimate the degree to which other people agree with his or her beliefs, opinions and behavioral choices. Previous research has demonstrated false consensus in a variety of situations and circumstances, but prior to this study false consensus had not been measured in couples. This study asked two research questions: (1) Does false consensus occur at the same rate in romantically involved couples that it occurs in non-couples? (2) Does false consensus occur less in romantically involved couples in longer-term relationships? In order to examine these questions this study surveyed 143 couples using modified versions of the Relationship Beliefs Scale (RBS) and the Attitudes Toward Divorce Scale (ATDS). The scale were modified to measure false consensus by adding the question “Do you believe that your partner agrees with your view on this item?” to each item. The results indicated that while false consensus does occur in couples it occurs at a lower rate than in non-couples. This study did not find a relationship between false consensus and length of time in the relationship. Clinical implications are discussed. / Department of Counseling Psychology and Guidance Services
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:BSU/oai:cardinalscholar.bsu.edu:123456789/196971 |
| Date | 15 December 2012 |
| Creators | Cleveland, Amanda J. |
| Contributors | White, Michael J. |
| Source Sets | Ball State University |
| Detected Language | English |
Page generated in 0.0017 seconds