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Research suggests that endogenous opioids play a key role in the creation and maintenance of attachment bonds. Opioids acting at the μ-opioid receptor mediate reward and analgesia and are thus thought to underlie feelings of comfort and warmth experienced in the presence of close others. Disruption of μ-opioidergic activity increases separation distress in animals, suggesting that low opioid states may contribute to social pain. Accordingly, a functional μ-opioid receptor (OPRM1) polymorphism (C77G in primates, A118G in humans) affecting opioidergic signaling has been associated with separation distress and attachment behavior in nonhuman primates, and social pain sensitivity in humans. However, no research has examined the effects of this polymorphism on socioemotional experience, and specifically felt security, in daily interactions between romantic partners. Using an event-contingent recording method, members of 92 cohabiting romantic couples reported their felt security and quarrelsome behavior in daily interactions with each other for 20 days. Consistent with prior work, findings suggested that, relative to AA homozygotes, G allele carriers were more sensitive to their partners' self-reported quarrelsome behaviors (e.g., criticism), showing a greater decline in felt security when their partners reported higher quarrelsome behavior than usual. This is the first study to link variation in OPRM1 with felt security toward romantic partners in everyday social interactions. More generally, this research supports the theory that the attachment system incorporated evolutionarily primitive pain-regulating opioidergic pathways. We also discuss implications of this work for understanding of differential vulnerability to health risks posed by social stress.

In-person interactions are characterized by better psychological and interpersonal outcomes than technology-mediated interactions. These benefits are thought to stem from the presence of more communication channels for the expression and reception of affiliative cues and the effortless processing of these cues. We investigated whether in-person versus phone-mediated interactions are characterized by higher accuracy of perceiving the other's affiliation and higher bias of assumed similarity with this other regarding affiliation. Using an event-contingent recording methodology, cohabitating romantic partners reported their perception of the other's affiliative behavior and their affiliative behavior in interactions with each other during a 20-day interval. Participants during in-person interactions (1) were more accurate in perceiving affiliative behavior and (2) assumed greater similarity between their own and their partner's affiliative behavior. Findings suggest that greater accuracy in perceiving affiliation and assumption of similarity with the romantic partner with respect to affiliation may in part explain the benefits of in-person interactions.

Intensive longitudinal research designs are increasingly used to study personality processes. The resulting data can be highly informative in ways that other data cannot, but these data also pose statistical challenges. Most often a multilevel or mixed effects modeling approach is adopted, which is appropriate but may not be optimal. Surprisingly little attention has been given to reliability of measurement, and the models often lack adequate complexity to test theoretical questions of interest. These limitations can be addressed with multilevel structural equation modeling (MSEM), which weds the ability to deal with nested data structures with the strengths of structural equation modeling (e.g., latent variable models, multiple outcomes, and mediators). This chapter provides a gentle introduction to MSEM for personality researchers. Following an initial review of the relevant challenges facing researchers interested in studying personality using intensive longitudinal data, basic issues in MSEM are summarized, and a series of example models are presented. The online supplementary material provides Mplus code for the models presented.

Introduction Interpersonal spin is an indicator of intraindividual variability in social behavior. Spin is positively related to Neuroticism and is maladaptive, with well-documented deleterious effects on social functioning. The perceptual processes associated with spin and how spin emerges are less well-understood. The present research examines the interpersonal perception of individuals with higher spin and tests whether these perceptual processes explain the association of spin with Neuroticism. Method 267 students participated in a 20-day event contingent recording procedure, reporting on social interactions via mobile application. Participants' perceptions of others' behavior, their own affect, and their own behavior were measured within and across interactions. Results We examined the affective and behavioral responses of individuals with higher spin to perceptions of others' behaviors. Individuals with higher spin showed greater affective and behavioral reactivity to perceptions of others' communal (agreeable-quarrelsome) behavior. Neuroticism predicted greater affective reactivity (i.e., steeper slopes between event-level perceived communion and negative affect), which in turn predicted higher spin. Conclusions Individuals with higher spin may have an interpersonal style characterized by greater reactivity to perceptions of others' communal behavior. These individuals' behavioral lability may reflect underlying emotional dysregulation. These processes may ultimately interfere with the formation and maintenance of social bonds.

Given the significance of close relationships for human survival, it is thought that biological mechanisms evolved to support their initiation and maintenance. The neuropeptide oxytocin is one such candidate identified in non-human animal research. We investigated whether variation in CD38, a gene involved in oxytocin secretion and attachment behavior in rodents, predicts romantic relationship dynamics in daily life. Community couples participated in an event-contingent recording (ECR) study in which they reported their social behavior, perception of their partner’s behavior, and affect during their interactions with one another over a 20-day period; couples also completed various measures of relationship adjustment. Out of the 111 couples (N = 222 individuals) who provided either ECR and/or relationship adjustment information, we had information on CD38 for 118 individuals. As hypothesized, variation in rs3796863, a single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) identified in prior work, predicted communal behaviors (e.g., the expression of affection), as well as overall relationship adjustment, such that individuals with the CC (vs. AC/AA) allele reported higher levels of communal behavior across their daily interactions with their romantic partner, as well as higher levels of relationship adjustment. Individuals with the CC (vs. AC/AA) allele of rs3796863 also reported less negative affect and felt insecurity in their interactions with their romantic partner. Notably, we found that variation in the romantic partner's rs3796863 SNP was related to the person's outcomes, independent of the person’s rs3796863 genotype. These findings support the role of oxytocin in the interpersonal processes implicated in the maintenance of close relationships.

We examined whether intrapersonal variability in the perception of partner’s behavior, perception spin, was related to partner’s intrapersonal variability in behavior, behavioral spin, and was associated with biases in the perception of negative affect. Ninety-three cohabiting couples reported their perceptions of partner’s affect and partner’s communal and agentic behavior in interactions with each other for 20 days. Perception spin was calculated as the within-person standard deviation of perception scores across interactions. Spin in the perception of the partner was associated with the partner’s behavioral spin. Participants with higher perception spin overestimated their partner’s negative affect and more strongly assumed that their partner’s affect was similar to their own negative affect. Thus, perception spin is an individual difference variable that reflects in part the extent of variability in the partner’s behavior, but higher spin also indicates distortions in perceptions of others.

Objective Interpersonal spin refers to within-person variability in social behavior. Pen-and-paper Event-Contingent Recording (ECR) has typically been used to measure spin, establish its reliability, and explore its relation with personality characteristics and variability in situational features. The present study aims to replicate these studies using mobile application-based ECR. Method 267 students participated in a 20-day ECR procedure, reporting on social interactions via mobile application. Five-factor traits were measured pre-ECR using self-report. Spin scores and situational features were assessed across interpersonal interactions. Results The reliability of spin scores was substantial but was lower than in previous studies. We partially confirmed previous findings, demonstrating that spin is predicted by Neuroticism, although the effect was smaller than in previous studies, and not meaningfully predicted by variability in external situational features. Conclusions The present study provides some support for an application-based ECR procedure to collect data about within-person variability in social behavior. Practical and procedural advantages and limitations of this method are discussed. Differences in reliability and effect sizes between the present study and previous studies raise important considerations for future research.

BACKGROUND: We examined the influence of interindividual differences in alcohol use on the intraindividual associations of drinking occurrence with interpersonal behaviors, affect, and perceptions of others during naturally occurring social interactions.METHODS: For 14 consecutive days, 219 psychology freshmen (55% female; Mage = 20.7 years, SD = 2.18) recorded their behaviors, affect, and perceptions in social interactions soon after an interpersonal event occurred. Interpersonal behaviors and perceptions were assessed in terms of dominance-submissiveness and agreeableness-quarrelsomeness. Participants also reported the number of alcoholic drinks consumed within 3 hours of each interaction. We considered the intraindividual associations of (i) having a drinking episode and (ii) the number of drinks during an episode with behaviors, affect, and perceptions and examined interindividual differences in drinking frequency and intensity during social interactions as potential moderators of these associations.RESULTS: Social drinking frequency and intensity moderated the associations between drinking episode and behaviors, affect, and perceptions in social interactions. During a drinking episode, more frequent social drinkers perceived others as more dominant than less frequent social drinkers. During a drinking episode in which more alcohol was consumed than usual, more frequent social drinkers also reported behaving more dominantly and experiencing less pleasant affect.CONCLUSIONS: As more frequent social drinkers had different interpersonal responses to drinking than less frequent social drinkers, including when they had consumed larger amounts of alcohol than usual, our results suggest a differential susceptibility to the effects of alcohol during naturally occurring social interactions among drinkers with varying drinking frequency.

High intrapersonal variability has frequently been found to be related to poor personal and interpersonal outcomes. Little research has examined processes by which intrapersonal variability influences outcomes. This study explored the relation of intrapersonal variability in negative affect (negative affect flux) to accuracy and bias in the perception of a romantic partner's quarrelsome behavior. A sample of 93 cohabiting couples participated in a study using an event-contingent recording (ECR) methodology in which they reported their negative affect, quarrelsome behavior, and perception of their partner's quarrelsome behavior in interactions with each other during a 20-day period. Negative affect flux was operationalized as the within-person standard deviation of negative affect scores across couple interactions. FINDINGS suggested that participants were both accurate in tracking changes in their partner's quarrelsome behavior and biased in assuming their partner's quarrelsome behavior mirrored their own quarrelsome behavior. Negative affect flux moderated both accuracy and bias of assumed similarity such that participants with higher flux manifested both greater tracking accuracy and larger bias of assumed similarity. Negative affect flux may be related to enhanced vigilance to close others' negative behavior, which may explain higher tracking accuracy and propensity to rely on a person's own negative behavior as a means of judging others' negative behavior. These processes may augment these individuals' negative interpersonal behavior, enhance cycles of negative social interactions, and lead to poor intrapersonal and interpersonal outcomes. Language: en

We examined how increases in embarrassment in response to interpersonal perceptions may account for defensive behaviors such as submissiveness in Social Anxiety Disorder (SAD). Based on evolutionary theory and cognitive theory, we hypothesized that: (1) interpersonal perceptions indicating others' disapproval and rejection would be associated with increases in embarrassment, (2) increases in embarrassment would be related to greater submissiveness, and (3) embarrassment would partly account for the effect of these interpersonal perceptions on submissive behavior. These effects were expected to be stronger among individuals with SAD than community controls. Using an event-contingent recording methodology, 40 individuals with SAD and 40 community controls reported on their perceptions of the interaction partner's communal behavior, their own submissive behavior, and embarrassment in interactions during a 20-day period. The expected effects were found in both SAD and control groups. Compared to community con...

BACKGROUND Alcohol intoxication facilitates interpersonal aggression, but this effect depends on person and situation characteristics. Using the Alcohol Myopia Model, we examined the joint influence of alcohol, trait anger, and state anger on the association between perceived quarrelsomeness in an interaction partner and quarrelsome behavior in naturally occurring interpersonal interactions. METHODS Using an event-contingent recording method over a 20-day period, community adults reported their perception of an interaction partner's quarrelsome behavior, their own anger and quarrelsome behavior, and the number of alcohol drinks consumed up to 3 hours prior to an interpersonal interaction. RESULTS Results revealed that alcohol consumption and trait anger jointly moderated the association between perceived quarrelsomeness and quarrelsome behavior indirectly via state anger. Heightened anger experience accounted for increased quarrelsome behavior in response to perceived quarrelsomeness among higher trait anger individuals who reported increased alcohol consumption. When no alcohol was consumed, no such difference in quarrelsome behavioral response was found between low and high trait anger individuals. CONCLUSIONS Findings suggest that alcohol consumption may strengthen the influence of perceived quarrelsomeness on a person's own quarrelsome behavior among individuals with a readiness to experience anger. Intense anger experience may undermine these individuals' ability to inhibit aggressive behaviors when under the influence of alcohol.

OBJECTIVE: We examined the influence of attachment orientation on the accuracy of perception of negative affect in close relationships. We hypothesized that tracking accuracy of perceiving negative affect (1) would be lower among perceivers and targets with higher attachment avoidance, and (2) would be lowest when both the target and perceiver were high on attachment avoidance. Tracking accuracy would be (3) higher among perceivers and targets with higher attachment anxiety, and (4) highest when both the target and perceiver were high on attachment anxiety. METHOD: We collected data from 92 couples who reported their negative affect and perception of their partner's negative affect in interactions with each other on 20 days. RESULTS: Results supported the hypotheses for attachment avoidance and tracking accuracy. Tracking accuracy of perceived negative affect was low when the target was high on attachment avoidance; accuracy was lowest when both the target and the perceiver were high on attachment avoidance. CONCLUSIONS: Lower “readability” of high avoidantly attached targets' emotions may inhibit intimacy and sensitive responding which thereby may contribute to poor relationship outcomes. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.

The present study examined the influence of trait Agreeableness and its interaction with social role status on interpersonal correspondence as reflected in the within-person relation between a person's communal (agreeable-quarrelsome) behavior and perceptions of the interaction partner's communal behavior. We used a sample of working adults (original data set: 113 participants and 12,303 interpersonal events; constrained data set in the work setting: 109 participants and 3,193 interpersonal events) and an event-contingent recording procedure to assess behavior in naturalistic interpersonal events. The results of multilevel modeling indicated that interpersonal correspondence was lower for high trait Agreeableness persons than for low trait Agreeableness persons, apparently due to less responsiveness to more disagreeable behavior by the other person in an interaction. High Agreeableness persons manifest greater interpersonal correspondence when in a high-status role than when in a low-status role, apparently by increasing responsiveness to disagreeable behavior from others. The results imply that high social role status may influence the effortful control process of high trait Agreeableness persons over their behavioral reactions to others' disagreeable behavior during interpersonal interactions.

Higher levels of the personality traits of self-criticism and neediness and lower levels of connectedness predict symptoms of psychopathology as well as interpersonal behaviors and outcomes. These personality characteristics may relate not only to mean levels of interpersonal behavior, but also to within-person variability in behavior. This study prospectively examined individual differences in the variability about the mean of individuals' interpersonal behaviors (Flux), as well as individuals' dispersion in the display of interpersonal behaviors (Spin) across events (Moskowitz & Zuroff, 2004). One hundred and thirteen adult community members completed a 20-day event-contingent recording procedure in which they recorded their interpersonal behaviors in the domains of dominance, submissiveness, agreeableness, and quarrelsomeness after interactions of over five minutes. Self-criticism, Neediness, and Connectedness were measured at baseline. Models adjusted for individuals' mean levels of behavior as well a...

We examined how the amplification of 3 within-person processes (behavioral reactivity to interpersonal perceptions, affect reactivity to interpersonal perceptions, and behavioral reactivity to a person's own affect) accounts for greater quarrelsome behavior among individuals with borderline personality disorder (BPD). Using an event-contingent recording (ECR) methodology, individuals with BPD (N = 38) and community controls (N = 31) reported on their negative affect, quarrelsome behavior, and perceptions of the interaction partner's agreeable-quarrelsome behavior in interpersonal events during a 20-day period. Behavioral reactivity to negative affect was similar in both groups. However, behavioral reactivity and affect reactivity to interpersonal perceptions were elevated in individuals with BPD relative to community controls; specifically, individuals with BPD reported more quarrelsome behavior and more negative affect during interactions in which they perceived others as more cold-quarrelsome. Greater negative affect reactivity to perceptions of other's cold-quarrelsome behavior partly accounted for the increased quarrelsome behavior reported by individuals with BPD during these interactions. This pattern of results suggests a cycle in which the perception of cold-quarrelsome behavior in others triggers elevated negative affect and quarrelsome behavior in individuals with BPD, which subsequently led to more quarrelsome behavior from their interaction partners, which leads to perceptions of others as cold-quarrelsomeness, which begins the cycle anew.

This study examined whether the personality traits of self-criticism and dependency respectively moderated the effects of perceived inferiority and emotional insecurity on negative affect during interpersonal interactions in individuals with borderline personality disorder (BPD). A sample of 38 patients with BPD and matched community comparison participants completed event-contingent record forms after each significant interaction for a 20-day period. Multilevel models showed that, controlling for baseline levels of depressive symptoms and neuroticism, as well as lagged negative affect, event-level elevations in perceived inferiority and emotional insecurity were related to more negative affect in both groups. Event-level perceived inferiority was more strongly associated with negative affect in patients with BPD who reported higher levels of self-criticism, while event-level perceived emotional insecurity was more strongly associated with negative affect in patients with BPD who reported higher levels of dependency. No significant interactions emerged for the comparison group. These findings further our understanding of differences among patients with BPD and support the application of personality-vulnerability or diathesis-stress models in predicting negative affect in BPD. Results have implications for the design of therapies for patients with BPD.

Increased serotonergic activity is often described as increasing the inhibition of behaviors. This study examined the more general hypothesis that increased serotonergic activity produces greater control over social behavior. Participants were drawn from two samples, individuals elevated on irritability and individuals unselected on personality characteristics. Individuals participated in a double blind cross-over design, providing event contingent records about their behavior during two 9-day periods which involved taking tryptophan or placebo. When taking tryptophan (which increases serotonergic activity), within-person variability among social behaviors across events (i.e., interpersonal spin) was reduced for irritable individuals, particularly those low on trait Agreeableness. These results suggest that higher levels of serotonergic activity enhance greater control and consistency in social behavior among irritable-disagreeable individuals. (C) 2011 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

We examined the influences of attachment orientations on within-person changes in affect as a function of perceptions of the interaction partner's agreeable behavior in interactions involving a romantic partner and other kinds of partners. Working adults reported affect, perceptions of the other person's behavior, and the relationship with the other in interpersonal events during 20 days. As expected, the within-person association between perceived partner's agreeable behavior and negative affect was stronger for individuals higher on attachment anxiety and was weaker for individuals higher on attachment avoidance. These effects were more pronounced in interactions with a romantic partner than with other persons. Findings demonstrate that attachment orientations are associated with differing within-person processes and that these processes are sensitive to kind of interaction partner.

It is common in studies of interpersonal characteristics to examine personality variables as static predictors. Yet in recent years it has also become possible to examine personality and related interpersonal processes as they unfold over time in association with event specific cues. The present article reviews research that (1) identifies behaviors that reflect the occurrence of hostile-irritable-quarrelsome traits in daily life, (2) demonstrates both the stability and within-person variability of these behaviors over time, (3) documents event-level interpersonal cues that are systematically associated with within-person variation in quarrelsome behavior, and (4) describes how dispositional level agreeableness and irritability moderate the associations of event-level cues with quarrelsome behavior. The influence of the neurotransmitter serotonin on quarrelsome behavior is also considered. The studies indicate that quarrelsome individuals have reduced affective reactivity to engaging in quarrelsome behavior, increased behavioral reactivity to perceptions of quarrelsomeness in others, and greater responsiveness to change in serotonin levels.

The interpersonal signature is the within-person pattern in social behavior that an individual demonstrates in response to the social behavior of others. In the present study, we sought to identify the dimensions underlying the differences between individuals in terms of the within-person structure and organization of their interpersonal signatures. Research participants collected event-contingent records of their day-to-day social interactions over a 20-day period. Participants recorded their own social behavior (dominant, agreeable, submissive, quarrelsome) in four situations defined by the perceived social behavior of their primary interaction partners (agreeable–dominant, agreeable–submissive, quarrelsome–submissive, quarrelsome–dominant). Although interpersonal signatures demonstrated a normative within-person organization that closely corresponded to the structure of the interpersonal circle, individual differences were also found. The idiographic signatures of individuals differed along two nomothetically interpretable dimensions, polarity and orthogonality, that were distinct from other dimensions of personality (the Big Five) but were related to socio-emotional adjustment (depression, self-esteem).

A person's behavior across situations can be characterized in terms of a mean level (disposition), a dispersion within the person around that mean level, and a stable organization to the pattern of dispersion (signature). The authors' goals were to examine the structure and stability of behavior, both at the level of behavioral dispositions and at the level of behavioral signatures. Participants completed event-contingent records of their social interactions over a 20-day period. Participants recorded their own social behavior (dominant, agreeable, submissive, quarrelsome) in 4 situations defined by the perceived social behavior of their primary interaction partners (agreeable-dominant, agreeable-submissive, quarrelsome- submissive, quarrelsome-dominant). Findings suggest that (a) once the normative influences of situations on behavior are removed, the remaining behavioral variation reflects both consistent cross-situational differences between individuals (dispositions) and consistent situational differences within individuals (signatures); (b) both dispositions and signatures display a 2-dimensional structure in adherence to the interpersonal circle; and (c) both dispositions and signatures constitute stable aspects of personality functioning.

Evolutionary approaches have potentially much to offer to our understanding of personality, social behavior, and psychopathology. In a recent article (Zuroff, Fournier, & Moskowitz, 2007), we sought to test the social competition theory of depression, which provides an account of the social behavior of depressed individuals through postulation of an Involuntary Defeat Strategy (IDS). The IDS is elicited by the perception of a defeat from which the person cannot escape and is postulated to have served the adaptive function of restraining combatants from entering or continuing in hazardous contests with superior rivals. Relatively brief activation of the IDS would correspond to mild depression or dysphoria. Prolonged activation of the IDS would present itself as debilitating clinical depression. Utilizing an event–contingent recording method to capture the day–to–day social interactions of individuals, we examined whether mildly depressed individuals dynamically adjust their behavior in response to the behavior of their interaction partners in ways consistent with the social competition theory. Considerable support for the social competition theory was found. In their commentary on this article, Pettit and Yaroslavsky (2007) suggest four main criticisms of the social competition theory of depression: (1) several of our key findings could be understood equally well from

Attempts to develop neural network models of personality have not generally used empirical data for training and validating the models. Two illustrations are provided which demonstrate the incorporation of empirical data into the modeling of behavioral responses to situations varying in closeness and hierarchical role relationships. An event-contingent recording procedure is utilized to obtain data from the same participant in multiple events for multiple situations. This data is then used in the training and validation of the neural networks. The first illustration models dominant and submissive behaviors in response to situations varying in social role status. The second illustration models agreeable and quarrelsome behaviors in response to situations varying in closeness and gender of the interaction partner. The predictions from both neural network models are consistent with previous research.

The authors propose a new common treatment factor, autonomous motivation (Deci & Ryan, 2000), defined as the extent to which patients experience participation in treatment as a freely made choice emanating from themselves. Ninety-five depressed outpatients were randomly assigned to receive 16 sessions of manualized interpersonal therapy, cognitive–behavior therapy, or pharmacotherapy with clinical management. Self-report and interviewer-based measures of depressive severity were collected at pretreatment and posttreatment. Autonomous motivation, therapeutic alliance, and perceived therapist autonomy support were assessed at Session 3. Autonomous motivation was a stronger predictor of outcome than therapeutic alliance, predicting higher probability of achieving remission and lower posttreatment depression severity across all three treatments. Patients who perceived their therapists as more autonomy supportive reported higher autonomous motivation.

Trait predictors for personality constructs that describe intraindividual variability in interpersonal behavior were examined across three event-contingent recording studies. Flux refers to variability about an individual’s mean score on an interpersonal dimension and was examined for the four poles of the interpersonal circumplex. Pulse and spin refer to variability about an individual’s mean extremity and mean angular coordinate on the interpersonal circumplex. Moderate to high temporal stability was found for pulse, spin, and flux in dominant, submissive, agreeable, and quarrelsome behaviors. Neuroticism was a robust predictor of greater spin. Extraversion was a robust predictor of greater flux in agreeable and quarrelsome behaviors. In contrast, Agreeableness was a robust predictor of less flux in quarrelsome behavior and less spin. Flux, pulse, and spin provide reliable additions for describing individual differences which are related to, but not redundant with, five-factor traits.

Personality constructs were proposed to describe intraindividual variability in interpersonal behavior. Flux refers to variability about an individual's mean score on an interpersonal dimension and was examined for the 4 poles of the interpersonal circumplex. Pulse and spin refer to variability about an individual's mean extremity and mean angular coordinate on the interpersonal circumplex. These constructs were measured using event-contingent recording. Latent state-trait analyses indicated high stability of flux in submissive, agreeable, and quarrelsome behaviors and some stability in the flux of dominance. Further analyses indicated moderate to high stability in pulse and spin. Neuroticism predicted greater pulse, spin, and submissive behavior flux. Extraversion predicted greater flux in agreeable behavior. In contrast, Agreeableness predicted reduced spin and quarrelsome behavior flux. Social environmental variables predicted greater flux in dominant behavior. Flux, pulse, and spin provide reliable and distinctive additions to the vocabulary for describing individual differences.

Social rank theorists propose that threat appraisals evoke escalation behavior toward subordinates and de-escalation behavior toward superiors. These hypotheses were examined among records of behavior sampled ecologically from the work environments of 90 individuals. At the level of the event, situated threat appraisals (feeling criticized) predicted different kinds of behavior across status situations. Individuals tended to quarrel when criticized by subordinates and to submit when criticized by superiors. At the level of the person, aggregated rank appraisals (feeling inferior) predicted different kinds of behavior across status situations. Individuals who typically felt more inferior tended to quarrel more frequently with subordinates and to submit more frequently with superiors. Findings implicated inferiority and threat as fundamental dimensions underlying the behavior of the social rank system.

In many fields of science, phenomena are studied closely over time to make inferences about patterns of behavior and to allow for predictions of future change and stability. In behavioral medicine, traditional cross-sectional and longitudinal designs are useful for capturing highly stable or slowly-changing phenomena, but important behavior change can be missed by one-occasion measures or infrequent measurements taken at widely-spaced points in time. We review recent research showing how a more complete understanding of many forms of psychological and somatic phenomena can be achieved through intensive measurement within the temporal context in which behavior occurs. This "process approach" to research, conducted in both naturalistic and laboratory settings, is presented here and placed in a methodological and theoretical framework. We also attempt to make recent research on the non-linear dynamics of behavior more accessible by describing and illustrating the uses of time in behavioral medicine research.

The authors examined whether variations in day-to-day estimates of personality characteristics, which are often treated as error, are instead predictable and meaningful. Using event-sampling and spectral analysis, they found that variations in interpersonal behavior over weekly periods were cyclic and normative. Dominant, submissive, agreeable, and quarrelsome behaviors rose during the week and fell on the weekend. The more general dimensions of agency and communion exhibited opposite patterns of cyclicity, with agency rising and communion falling during the week. Interpersonal traits were not useful in predicting behavior cyclicity. Extraverts exhibited a daily cycle, partially mediated by more varied partners and social behaviors during evenings. Findings are discussed with reference to conceptions of personality expression as dynamic yet stable processes.

Department of Psychology, McGill University, Montreal, Quebec (D.S.M. and K.W.B.), and Department of Psychology, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan (S.C.) tests in every situation or in every instance of a certain kind of situa tion. Questionnaires administered once are not well suited for access ing information about such vari ability in behavior and affect. In stead, there is implicit aggregation over situations and occasions. Spe cifically, information about mean ingful variation in the expression of personality across occasions and situations is lost.

Hostility is associated with altered metabolic activity but little research has examined sex and/or age differences using a global index of metabolic dysfunction or examined different aspects of hostility.The moderating effect of sex and age on the associations between three aspects of hostility (cynical attitude, angry affect, quarrelsome behavior in daily living) and metabolic burden (number of metabolic parameters in the higher quartile) were evaluated in 188 healthy men and women (M(age)=41; SD=11.34). Three years later, metabolic burden was measured again in 133 participants.At study onset, quarrelsome behavior was associated with greater metabolic burden in men and women (Beta=.144; p.05). After 3 yrs, cynical hostility predicted increased metabolic burden among mid-age and older individuals (b=.013 and .046 respectively; p.001).The aspect of hostility that is most closely associated with metabolic burden depends on the age of the participants and whether measures are concurrent or prospective.

Predictions from interpersonal traits to affect were examined in the context of 3 models. In the global trait model, traits were used to predict affect aggregated over a 20-day period. In the situational congruence model, traits were used to predict affect in trait-relevant situations. In the behavioral concordance model, the co-occurrence between behaviors and affect was examined for individual participants, and then traits were used to predict the degree to which behavior and affect co-occurred. No support was found for the global trait and situational congruence models. Support was found for the behavioral concordance model for 3 of the 4 traits. Individuals high on agreeableness and quarrelsomeness experienced pleasant affect when they engaged in behaviors concordant with their traits. Individuals high on agreeableness, quarrelsomeness, and dominance experienced unpleasant affect when they engaged in behaviors opposite to their traits.

The present study examined the systematic effects of gender and situation on two personality characteristics: dominance and friendliness. Individuals were observed twice in each of three situations: with a familiar person of the same sex, with an unfamiliar person of the same sex, and with an unfamiliar person of the opposite sex. Observations by independent observers were collected using behavior counts and ratings. In addition, self-reports about dominance and friendliness in different situations were collected. Results based on the independent observers generally indicated that sex differences are reduced in mixed-sex groups and accentuated in same-sex groups. There was also evidence of systematic errors in the self-reports suggesting that men may overestimate their degree of friendliness and that women may overestimate their level of dominance.

BackgroundInterpersonal functioning is central to social anxiety disorder (SAD). Empirical examinations of interpersonal behaviors in individuals with SAD have frequently relied on analogue samples, global retrospective reports and laboratory observation. Moreover, research has focused on avoidance and safety behaviors, neglecting potential links between SAD and affiliative behaviors.MethodThe influence of situational anxiety and emotional security on interpersonal behaviors was examined for individuals with SAD (n=40) and matched normal controls (n=40). Participants monitored their behavior and affect in naturally occurring social interactions using an event-contingent recording procedure.ResultsIndividuals with SAD reported higher levels of submissive behavior and lower levels of dominant behavior relative to controls. Consistent with cognitive–behavioral and evolutionary theories, elevated anxiety in specific events predicted increased submissiveness among individuals with SAD. Consistent with attachment theory, elevations in event-level emotional security were associated with increased affiliative behaviors (increased agreeable behavior and decreased quarrelsome behavior) among members of the SAD group. Results were not accounted for by concurrent elevations in sadness or between-group differences in the distribution of social partners.ConclusionsThese findings are consistent with predictions based on several theoretical perspectives. Further, the present research documents naturally occurring interpersonal patterns of individuals with SAD and identifies conditions under which these individuals may view social interactions as opportunities for interpersonal connectedness.

This study examined the validity of self-report measures and measures based on independent observers in the laboratory. It used 2 self-report formats, ratings on adjectives and ratings for specific situations, and 2 formats for responding by independent observers, ratings and behavior counts. The personality characteristics studied were dominance and friendliness. Ss participated in 6 laboratory situations: twice with a same-sex friend, twice with a male stranger, and twice with a female stranger

To examine the relation between social behaviour and vagal activity, the communal behaviour of healthy college men (N = 33) and women (N = 33) was manipulated while monitoring heart rate (HR) and respiratory sinus arrhythmia (RSA). The subjects were classified as low or high on communal trait. Communal behaviour was manipulated by having the subjects behave in an agreeable or quarrelsome manner in scripted role-plays. HR, RSA and self-report arousal were obtained during or immediately following baseline, experimental and relaxation periods. 2 (Gender) x 2 (Communal Trait; low/high) x 2 (Condition; agreeable/quarrelsome) ANCOVAs were performed. Men had lower RSA values when behaving in a quarrelsome fashion than agreeable and lower RSA values than women in the quarrelsome condition. In the latter condition, low communal men reported more arousal than other groups. Strong but opposite associations between RSA and affect arousal were observed in low communal men and woman. Men, especially more quarrelsome (less communal) men exhibited weaker vagal control during arousing social situations.

This study used multilevel structural equation modeling (MSEM; Preacher, Zyphur, & Zhang, 2010) to examine within-person processes that give rise to quarrelsome behavior in interactions between romantic partners. Based on Interpersonal Theory and Adult Attachment Theory, we hypothesized that a person's quarrelsome behavior would be predicted by (a) the direct effect of the partner's quarrelsome behavior, (b) an indirect effect mediated by the person's perceptions of the partner's quarrelsome behavior, and (c) an indirect effect mediated by the person's felt security. Using an event-contingent recording methodology, both partners in 93 cohabiting community couples reported independently on their quarrelsome behavior, felt security, and perceptions of the partner's quarrelsome behavior in interactions with each other during a 20-day period. Findings (see Figure 1 ) supported a direct effect of partner's increases in quarrelsome behavior on person's increases in quarrelsome behavior. This association was partly accounted for by perceptions of partner's behavior and felt security following these perceptions. The more a person perceived the partner as engaging in quarrelsome behavior, the more the person engaged in quarrelsome behavior [indirect effect = .016, 95% CI (.009 - .022)]. Furthermore, the person's perception of greater quarrelsomeness in the partner's behavior was associated with decreases in the person's felt security, which in turn were related to increases in a person's quarrelsome behavior [indirect effect = .009, 95% CI (.005 - .013)]. No gender differences were found. Findings indicate that a partner's increase in quarrelsome behavior is partly related to a person's increase in quarrelsome behavior in part to the extent that the person perceives the behavior as quarrelsome and consequently feels insecure during the interaction. Findings illustrate an application of MSEM for assessing multilevel mediation in the dyadic context. Moreover, the results suggest that theory and therapeutic interventions should consider interpersonal perceptions as the first link in the chain of affective and behavioral reactions to the interpersonal behaviors of others.

Etude de la generalite inter-situation de la dominance et des dispositions amicales dans un cadre experimental confrontant les participants a 6 epreuves realisees avec un ami ou un inconnu

Aggression and social withdrawal have long been of interest to personality psychologists. The present article presents a longitudinal study of the development of children selected from a community sample who were high on aggression and withdrawal. The selection of outcome variables is discussed, and outcomes during adolescence are described. For both males and females, high aggressiveness was predictive of low intelligence, poor school achievement, and psychiatric problems. For females, high aggressiveness was also predictive of general health problems. High social withdrawal was predictive of poor school achievement. Females who were high on withdrawal also had an elevated rate of abortions. Individuals who were high on both aggression and withdrawal had relatively poor social competence, had general problems with behavior, had low intelligence, and were performing poorly in school.

Thirty-two children, aged 6 to 11, were interviewed concerning their responses to distressing situations. Results indicate that the children possessed expectancies for coping with both sadness and anger. Coping strategies were predominantly behavioral, verbalized, and self-oriented; the most common was to engage in a distracting activity. Strategies employed with parents differed from those used with peers, and girls reported higher proportions of sadness-inducing events than did boys.