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9 - Autonomous Interdependence

A Complementary Understanding of Personal and Relational Needs in Interdependent Relationships

from Part III - Interdependence, Goal Pursuit, and Person Factors

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  19 June 2020

By
Benjamin W. Hadden  and
Yuthika U. Girme
Edited by
Laura V. Machia ,
Christopher R. Agnew  and
Ximena B. Arriaga
Laura V. Machia
Affiliation:
Syracuse University, New York
Christopher R. Agnew
Affiliation:
Purdue University, Indiana
Ximena B. Arriaga
Affiliation:
Purdue University, Indiana
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Summary

Interdependent relationships are complex because they require the coordination of personal needs with relational needs. A common assumption in the extant literature is that personal needs are divergent from relational needs, requiring individuals to balance personal and relational needs by prioritizing one over the other at any given point. In the first section of this chapter, we draw on self-determination and interdependence theories to review existing research that challenges the assumption that personal and relational needs are inherently in conflict. We propose that personal and relational needs can be conceptualized as complementary, and that pursuing relational needs and goals does not necessarily involve sacrificing or deprioritizing personal ones (or vice versa). Instead, the pursuit of favorable personal and relational needs can serve to facilitate each other. Of course, relationship circumstances do not always allow for such complementary processes. Thus, the second section of this chapter overviews various conditions (e.g., relationship processes, relationship contexts, and individual differences) that pit personal and relational needs against each other, and explores how people adapt to and manage such circumstances. Taken together, this chapter aims to shed light on the complexities of coordinating personal and relational needs in highly interdependent relationships.

Keywords

Psychological need fulfillmentpersonal needsrelational needsPersonal-Relational Equilibrium Modelgoal coordinationgoal shielding
Type
Chapter
Information
Interdependence, Interaction, and Close Relationships , pp. 183 - 203
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2020

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