Search

This article integrates the literature on interorganizational relationships into six generalizable determinants of relationship formation, applies these determinants to the prediction of six types of interorganizational relations, and proposes hypotheses for future research that specify the conditions under which each determinant will he more likely to predict different types of relations. These determinants provide the basis for a general theory of interorganizational relationships and suggest that alternative theoretical perspectives on relationship formation provide important but only partial insights into why organizations enter into relationships with one another.

In this paper language and social relationships are viewed as theoretical entities with mutual entailments. Several types of relationships are conceptualised and the various levels of language are related to these. Language is discussed as an independent variable which affects interpersonal bonding and as a dependent variable which is affected by relational processes. Several issues are raised, includ ing : Can persons talk about relationships with precision? Is language a funda mental constituent of most relationships? And, does communication play a primary role in relationship formation, maintenance, and decay? A general model is offered and theoretical implications are discussed.

Inclusion/exclusion behavior provided the focus for a phenomenological exploration of personal and interpersonal processes of relationship formation. Images constructed in a theme-oriented guided fantasy were related to self-report data and behavior observations as a way of formulating initial descriptions of interpersonal involvement preferences. A number of case examples were used as a framework for describing the various patterns and themes that emerged. Personal patterns of involvement clustered into four themes: those who actively excluded or avoided contact with others; those who passively excluded themselves yet remained available for limited interaction; those who sought to include themselves in a passive way; and those who actively included themselves.

In this article, the author offers a theoretically based, heuristic model for understanding the etiology and maintenance of inhibited sexual desire (ISD) within the context of a developing relationship system. Empirical studies of premarital relationship formation, progression and maintenance form the basis of this discussion. The interplay of intra-personal and interactional dynamics is highlighted. Emphasis is placed upon understanding ISD according to social exchange formulations of premarital and marital behavior. Particular attention is given to the interactants' nonverbalized rules and implicitly held expectations for the sexual exchange process. Guidelines for assessment are offered and implications for intervention are drawn.

This paper is an account of individual psychotherapy with a severely disturbed 5-year-old boy. The patient was seen in play therapy in an outpatient clinic once a week for one year and then twice weekly for 5 months. At this point, treatment was interrupted. During these 17 months this child, Eric, moved from an ego position of massive withdrawal to a state of considerable attachment and great pressure to communicate verbally. When referred to the clinic, Eric had been seen periodically for evaluation at a university diagnostic center. The records from this center include such descriptions as “atypical, with secondary to severe maternal deprivation,” and “severe emotional disorder.” He was never designated as “autistic,” although he showed many of the characteristics of the autistic child. Minimal speech was present, along with little eye contact; and Eric usually appeared to be unaware of people. He seemed listless, his behavior was stereotyped, and he would allow himself to be placed in the lap of any adult, but sat as though the other person were part of the furniture, and did not allow his body to conform to that of his host. Although he presented a picture strongly suggestive of autistic detachment, he was described as “autisticlike” by both a pediatrician and a clinical psychologist, who shared the opinion that his prognosis was better than that of the autistic child. This optimism was based upon signs of a potential for relationship formation.