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Cyberaggression is a growing issue because of its vast prevalence, potential for anonymity for its perpetrators, and the easy distribution of harassing and aggressive messages. Although cyberaggression on Twitter has begun to receive attention, little research has systematically explored the common themes found in hostile messages on this social media platform. Understanding the thematic content of cyberaggression is of particular interest since there may be differences in the content based on the characteristics of the victims. Furthermore, the topics that are used to attack individuals are important to study because they may be unique to certain groups. In this project, we focus on cyber aggression directed towards women of color. We apply topic analysis and social network methodology to the issue of cyberbullying, or cyber aggression, on the social media platform Twitter. In this research, we begin by examining the occurrence of aggressive, harmful Twitter messages that are directed towards several groups of women of color in the United States, including Hispanic/Latinx women and Black women. Next, we discuss common themes that emerge within these types of communications. In our sample of tweets that targeted blacks, our findings suggest one common theme concerned promiscuity, suggesting that black women are more sexual. In messages containing Latinx slurs, on the other hand, the current political climate in the United States was a recurring theme in aggressive messages. This project illustrates the role that stereotyping and context play in aggressive content on Twitter. Our findings reveal that social norms that enforce traditional, negative race and gender stereotypes, are evident in aggressive messages. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Online dating is a rapidly expanding market for meeting potential mates. According to a nationally representative survey, 22% of recently married couples first met online. Dating arranged on the Internet provides a unique opportunity to investigate the earliest stages of relationship formation. Structural factors that influence partner selection in the "offline" world, such as living in the same neighborhood, are held relatively constant, facilitating the study of individuals' partner preferences net of social and structural barriers. Historically, intimate pairs formed "offline" tend to be homophilous, or similar, on a range of demographic factors. Here we investigated whether homophilous partner preferences also give rise to distinct network clusters in the e-mail exchanges of 3,521 online participants of a national, free, dating website in a Midwest city. Using social network analysis, we identified and visualized subgroups of participants who sent and replied to messages from similar possible partners, and then we conducted a multivariate analysis of subgroup membership. The largest subgroup consisted primarily of highly attractive individuals who were older than the site average. Highly attractive young people comprised the second largest subgroup. Neither education nor body type typically predicted subgroup membership. Attractiveness and age drove much of the homophilous patterns, with separate niches formed for atypical preferences, such as "casual sex" or "activity partner." Although race was not a common determinant of subgroup membership, there were important exceptions. Blacks were concentrated in two of the eleven largest subgroups, and they were significantly underrepresented, as compared to whites, in the largest subgroup. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study examines the tendency of individuals to become disillusioned with the qualities that initially attract them to an intimate partner, that is, ?fatal attractions.? We find evidence of fatal attractions among a sample of 208 adults, with an average age of 36.5 years. The results demonstrate that this type of partner disenchantment is not limited to relatively young adults in college relationships, and that it can occur in long-term stable marriages and partnerships as well. We also demonstrate that these types of attractions can be identified by the use of quantitative scales, a method that is apt to be more reliable than previous approaches that rely only on qualitative data. Regression analyses reveal that, as predicted, fatal attractions are particularly likely when individuals are drawn to extreme partner qualities. They are less likely when individuals are drawn to partner traits that are seen as similar to those of their own. Finally, fatal attractions occur in a wide variety of personality dimensions. An illustration of a fatal attraction includes a woman who was attracted to her husband because of his power and prestigious position, but who now dislikes that he is too much of a ?Type A? personality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper explores the implications of a basic, theoretical model of interaction between two actors over time. It identifies the types of two actor systems that are likely to approach a stable equilibrium, become unstable, or exhibit oscillatory (stable or unstable) behavior. In particular, this research explores a number of variations of a differential equation model for couples (Felmlee and Greenberg, 1999). Several basic assumptions about dyads are formalized in a series of models, and illustrations of each model are discussed. The models demonstrate that if both actors are independent of each other, dependent on each other, or cooperative, then a stable equilibrium is approached over time. Stability is not obtained, on the other hand, when both actors are "independent reactionaries" or "system contrarians." In several other combinations of types of actors, the outcome depends on the values of the parameters, that is, the relative strength of various model components. For example, when a dependent actor is paired with a relatively highly uncooperative partner, then a stable cyclical interaction pattern develops; in other specifications of the model, the system converges to a point equilibrium, or produces exploding oscillations. Negative, reactionary, or contrary behavior on the part of at least one actor is necessary, but not sufficient, for instability. The findings illustrate the complexity of a simple two-actor dynamic system. They also demonstrate that ignoring the endogenous system created by a pair of interdependent actors is misleading when considering the long-term behavior of a pair. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]