Romantic relationships of hypercompetitive individuals are much more problematic with greater conflict compared to those not so hypercompetitive; however, relationship satisfaction and commitment do not covary with hypercompetitiveness (Ryckman et al., 2002). Study 1 considered whether the type of commitment matters in a romantic relationship. Indeed, hypercompetitiveness was associated positively with constraint commitment (i.e., maintaining a relationship out of concern for one’s investment and other social-psychological costs associated with leaving), and was associated negatively with personal dedication commitment (i.e., interest in the relationship based on concerns for mutual benefit). Not only may the romantic relationships of hypercompetitive individuals be more problematic, other interpersonal relationships may be negatively impacted as well. Study 2 noted that hypercompetitiveness was associated positively with relationship problems involving both family members and peers; however, relationship closeness with family and friends did not vary with hypercompetitiveness. Implications of findings in both studies are considered.
Berscheid, E., Snyder, M., & Omoto, A. M. (1989). The relationship closeness inventory: Assessing the closeness of interpersonal relationships. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 57, 792-807. doi:10.1037/0022-3514.57.5.792
Berscheid, E., Snyder, M., & Omoto, A. M. (2004). Measuring closeness: The relationship closeness inventory (RCI) revisited. In D. J. Mashek and P. Aron (Eds.), Handbook of closeness and intimacy (pp. 81-101). Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.
Briggs, K. (2008). The power of forgiveness. Minneapolis, MN: Fortress Press.
Collier, S. A., Ryckman, R. M., Thornton, B., & Gold, J. A. (2010). Competitive personality attitudes and forgiveness of others. Journal of Psychology, 144, 535-543. doi:10.1080/00223980.2010.511305
Cronbach, L. J. (1951). Coefficient alpha and the internal structure of tests. Psychometrika, 16, 297-334. doi:10.1007/BF02310555
Crowne, D. P., & Marlowe, D. (1964). The approval motive: Studies in evaluative dependence. New York: Wiley.
Dru, V. (2003). Relationships between an ego orientation scale and a hypercompetitive scale: Their correlates with dogmatism and authoritarianism factors. Personality and Individual Differences, 35, 1509-1524. doi:10.1016/S0191-8869(02)00366-5
Forte, J. A., & Green, R. G. (1994). The reliability and validity of the index of peer relations with a clinical and nonclinical sample of adoleslcents. Journal of Social Service Research, 19, 49-65. doi:10.1300/J079v19n01_03
Hendrick, S. S., Hendrick, C., & Adler, N. L. (1988). Romantic relationships: Love, satisfaction, and staying together. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 54, 980-988. doi:10.1037/0022-3514.54.6.980
Horney, K. (1937). The neurotic personality of our time. New York: Norton.
Hudson, W. W. (1982). The clinical measurement package: A field manual. Chicago, IL: Dorsey Press.
Hudson, W. W., Acklin, J. D., & Bartosh, J. C. (1980). Assessing discord in family relationships. Social Work Research and Abstracts, 16, 21-29.
Kelley, H. H., Berscheid, E., Christensen, A., Harvey, J. H., Huston, T. L., Levinger, G., McClintock, E., Peplau, L. A., & Peterson, D. R. (1983). Close relationships. New York: Freeman.
Kelly, E. L., & Conley, J. J. (1987). Personality and compatibility: A prospective analysis of marital stability and marital satisfaction. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 52, 27-40. doi:10.1037/0022-3514.52.1.27
Klein, W., Beltran, M., & Sowers-Hoag, K. (1990). Validating an assessment of peer relationship problems. Journal of social Service Research, 13, 71-85. doi:10.1300/J079v13n04_05
Levesque, R. (1993). The romantic experience of adolescents in satisfying love relationships. Journal of Youth and Adolescence, 22, 219-251. doi:10.1007/BF01537790
Rempel, J. K., Holmes, J. G., & Zanna, M. P. (1985). Trust in close relationships. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 49, 95-112. doi:10.1037/0022-3514.49.1.95
Reynolds, W. N. M. (1982). Development of a reliable and valid short form of the Marlowe-Crowne social desireability scale. Journal of Clinical Psychology, 38, 119-125. doi:10.1002/1097-4679(198201)38:1 3.0.CO;2-I
Robins, R. W., Caspi, A., & Moffitt, T. E. (2000). Two personalities, one relationship: Both partners’ personality traits shape the quality of their relationship. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 79, 251-279. doi:10.1037/0022-3514.79.2.251
Ross, S. R., Rausch, M. K., & Canada, K. E. (2003). Competition and cooperation in the five-factor model: Individual differences in achievement orientation. Journal of Psychology, 137, 323-337. doi:10.1080/00223980309600617
Ross, S. R., Stewart, J., Mugge, M., & Fultz, B. (2001). The imposter phenomenon, achievement dispositions, and the five-factor model. Personality and Individual Differences, 31, 1347-1355. doi:10.1016/S0191-8869(00)00228-2
Rusbult, C. E. (1980). Commitment and satisfaction in romantic associations: A test of the investment model. Journal of Experimental Social Psychology, 16, 172-186. doi:10.1016/0022-1031(80)90007-4
Rusbult, C. E. (1983). A longitudinal test of the investment model: The development (and deterioration) of satisfaction and commitment in heterosexual involvements. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 45, 101-117. doi:10.1037/0022-3514.45.1.101
Ryckman, R. M., Hammer, M., Kaczor, L. M., & Gold, J. A. (1990). Construction of a hypercompetitive attitude scale. Journal of Personality Assessment, 55, 630-639. doi:10.1207/s15327752jpa5503&4_19
Ryckman, R. M., & Houston, D. M. (2003). Value priorities in American and British female and male university students. Journal of Social Psychology, 143, 127-138. doi:10.1080/00224540309598435
Ryckman, R. M., Libby, C. R., van den Borne, B., Gold, J. A., & Lindner, M. A. (1997). Values of hypercompetitive and personal development competitive individuals. Journal of Personality Assessment, 62, 84-94. doi:10.1207/s15327752jpa6201_8
Ryckman, R. M., Thornton, B., & Butler, J. C. (1994). Personality correlates of the hypercompetitive attitude scale: Validity tests of Horney’s theory of neurosis. Journal of Personality Assessment, 62, 84-94. doi:10.1207/s15327752jpa6201_8
Ryckman, R. M., Thornton, B., Gold, J. A., & Burckle, M. A. (2002). Romantic relationships of hypercompetive individuals. Journal of Social and Clinical Psychology, 21, 517-530. doi:10.1521/jscp.21.5.517.22619
Shackkelford, T. K., & Buss, D. M. (1997). Marital satisfaction in evolutionary psychological perspective. In R. J. Sternberg and M. Hojjat (Eds.), Satisfaction in close relationships (pp. 7-25). New York: Guilford Press.
Stanley, S. M., & Markman, H. J. (1992). Assessing commitment in personal relationships. Journal of Marriage and the Family, 54, 595-608. doi:10.2307/353245
Thornton, B., Lovley, A., Ryckman, R. M., & Gold, J. A. (2009). Playing dumb and knowing it all: Competitive orientation and impression management strategies. Individual Differences Research, 7, 265-271.
Watson, D., Hubbard, B., & Wiese, D. (2000). General traits of personality and affectivity as predictors of satisfaction in intimate relationships: Evidence from self- and partner-ratings. Journal of Personality, 68, 413-449. doi:10.1111/1467-6494.00102
Watson, P. J., Morris, R. J., & Miller, L. (1998). Narcissism and the self as continuum: Correlations with assertiveeness and hypercompetitiveness. Imagination, Cognition, and Personality, 17, 249-259.