Social Relationships Lab

The goal of our research is to understand how relationships and specifically relationship partners influence human behavior, affect, and cognition. Our research program implements a social psychological approach to studying various types of relationships that play major role in daily functioning. The primary focus has been romantic relationships and the influence partners have within these relationships. Through collaborations with other researchers, we have extended this same basic concept to other types of relationships, including the patient-caretaker relationship for those suffering from traumatic brain injury, the person-environment relationship, and relationships between people and their pets. Accordingly, these unique domains act as extensions of the primary research interests as a relationships research lab. Across these differing types of relationships, we have utilized two prevalent theories from close relationship research: attachment theory and the investment model of commitment.