Lover and learner: Exploring relational schema change following relationship dissolution.

Romantic relationships are known to be very influential, but less is known about how these relationships, and particularly the breakup of these relationships, may affect individuals' relational schemas, or their expectations for relationships. Undergraduate students reported on how their views of themselves, romantic partners, and relationships changed after breaking up with a past partner. Results suggest that relational schemas change following relationship dissolution and that there are both positive and negative aspects to this change.

Presenting Different Selves to Different People: Self-Presentation as a Function of Relationship Type and Contingent Self-Esteem.

Past work has established a connection between self-esteem and self-presentation; however, research has not explored how self-esteem that is contingent on one's relationship may influence self-presentational tactics in that relationship. Across two studies, undergraduate students reported on the extent to which their self-esteem depended on their friendship and romantic relationship, as well as the extent to which they engaged in self-presentation behaviors in those relationships. The results suggest that relationship-specific contingent self-esteem predicts relationship-specific self-presentation; however, friendship-contingent self-esteem predicted self-presentation in both friendships and romantic relationships.

Exploring the dynamic nature of "us": An integrative approach to relationship cognition.

Most psychiatric disorders are associated with problems in interpersonal relationships. This is not surprising because people's relationships with others are an influential and integral component of their lives. The cognitive representations of these relationships can be important in understanding these relationships, and both the attachment and relational schema approaches have helped to better understand the nature of these cognitions.

Drowning the pain: intimate partner violence and drinking to cope prospectively predict problem drinking.

Introduction: The present study examined the longitudinal association among drinking problems, drinking to cope, and degree of intimate partner violence (IPV). Two competing models were tested; the first model posited that drinking to cope leads to greater drinking problems and this subsequently leads to more violence in the relationship (an intoxication-violence model). The second model speculated that violence in the relationship leads to drinking to cope, which in turn leads to greater drinking problems (a self-medication model).

Good intentions gone awry? Effects of weight-related social control on health and well-being.

A negative body image has been associated with a variety of negative health and well-being outcomes. Social pressures from others, in the form of weight-related social control, may serve to exacerbate this effect, especially for college-aged women. Undergraduate students (N=399) completed a variety of questionnaires assessing weight-related social control, well-being, and diet and exercise behaviors.