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The manageability of empathic (in)accuracy during couples' conflict : relationship-protection or self-protection?

Journal Contribution - Journal Article

The current study sought to expand upon research on motivated empathic (in)accuracy by testing assumptions underlying the empathic accuracy model, namely if a perceiver's level of empathic accuracy is variable and might be associated with different outcomes depending the situation. More specifically, the model assumes that (a) the perception of threat in the thoughts/feelings of an interaction partner can result in a lower level of empathic accuracy, and (b) empathic accuracy can both improve and harm situational well-being on the personal and relationship level. These assumptions were tested in a laboratory-based study in which couples participated in a conflict interaction task and reported on their thought processes during a video-review task. All participants also completed a similar standard-stimulus task. A shift in participants' motivation to be accurate to a motivation to be inaccurate in response to perceived threat could not be detected. Men's higher levels of empathic accuracy for non-threatening feelings of their female partner were predictive of an increased feeling of closeness in men. Women's higher levels of empathic accuracy for non-threatening feelings of the male partner were predictive for a better mood in women. A harmful effect of empathic accuracy for threatening thoughts/feelings on situational well-being was not found.
Journal: MOTIVATION AND EMOTION
ISSN: 1573-6644
Issue: 3
Volume: 42
Pages: 403 - 418
Publication year:2018
BOF-keylabel:yes
IOF-keylabel:yes
BOF-publication weight:0.1
CSS-citation score:1
Authors:National
Authors from:Higher Education
Accessibility:Open