Determinants of Responsiveness in Dyadic Interaction

Abstract

During the past ten years, psychologists have begun to devote considerable attention to the sequential properties of social interaction. The majority of this research has focused on description of sequential contingencies between the behaviors of inter- action partners, inferences concerning the conversational control functions of the observed behaviors, and/or assessment of the degree of mutual influence between the behaviors of interaction partners. For example, the first two strategies are embodied by research designed to examine the turn taking system in dyadic conver- sation (e.g., Duncan & Fiske, 1977; Jaffe & Feldstein, 1970); and the third by the various research programs investigating such processes as mutual influence between mothers and infants (e.g., Thomas & Malone, 1979; Thomas & Martin, 1976), reciprocity of self-disclosure (e.g., Warner, Kenney, & Stoto, 1979), matching of paralinguistic variables such as vocal pitch and intensity or lengths of utterances and pauses (e.g., Feldstein & Welkowitz, 1978), and synchrony of body movements (e.g., Kendon, 1970; McDowall, 1978) (see Cappella, 1981, for a review of mutual influence processes for a variety of behaviors). Unfortunately, such programs of research have not yet led to the development of systematic theoretical investigations of the process of interaction that simultane- ously provide understanding of (1) the way in which interaction is regulated, (2) the impact of interaction process variables on the outcomes of interaction, (3) the influence of external variables (e.g., personality, roles) on the process of interaction, and (4) the moderating impact of external variables on the relationship between interaction process and outcomes. This chapter will present a theoretical analysis of the role of responsiveness in dyadic interaction that will address each of the above concerns. The regulatory functions of responsiveness, the relationship between responsiveness and interaction outcomes, and the external variables that moderate this relationship are treated in detail elsewhere (Davis & Perkowitz, 1979; Davis, Note 1). The purpose of the present chapter is to examine the antecedents of responsiveness. Thus, after a brief review of the nature and consequences of responsiveness, the major portion of the chapter will be devoted to consideration of personality, role, and situational determinants of responsiveness.