Intimacy and affiliation motives in daily living: An experience sampling analysis.

Abstract

Fifty subjects who participated in an experience-sampling procedure carried electronic pagers with them for a week, during which time they were each paged seven times a day. In response to each page, subjects immediately completed a self-report form designed to sample current thoughts, affects, wishes, and behavior. Both intimacy and affiliation motivation were assessed via a prior administration of .the Thematic Apperception Test (TAT). Over the course of the week, subjects high in intimacy motivation revealed more (a) interpersonal thoughts and (b) positive affects in interpersonal situations than did subjects low in intimacy. Both intimacy and affiliation motivation were positively related to conversations and letter writing, which are behaviors indicative of warm and close interpersonal relations. Further, intimacy motivation was negatively associated with expressed wishes to be alone when interacting with others, whereas affiliation motivation was positively associated with expressed wishes to be interacting with others when alone. Sex differences are discussed, and the study's implications for (a) the measurement of motivational trends in operant thought and (b) investigations into Person X Situation interactions are outlined.