Abstract
Affectionate touch is an important behavior in close relationships throughout the lifespan. Research has investigated the relational and individual psychological and physical benefits of affectionate touch, but the situational factors that give rise to it have been overlooked. Theorizing from the interpersonal process model of intimacy, the current studies tested whether perceived partner responsiveness forecasts affectionate touch in romantic couples. Following a preliminary integrative data analysis (N = 842), three prospective studies use ecologically valid behavioral (Studies 1 and 2) and daily (Studies 2 and 3) data, showing a positive association between perceived partner responsiveness and affectionate touch. Furthermore, in Study 3, we tested a theoretical extension of the interpersonal process of intimacy, finding that affectionate touch forecasts the partner’s perception of the touch-giver’s responsiveness the next day. Findings suggest affectionate touch may be an untested mechanism at the heart of the interpersonal process of intimacy.
Highlights
Affectionate touch is an important behavior for establishing and maintaining social bonds
Pooling the four dyadic data sets, we fit the harmonized data to a two-level randomintercept model where affectionate touch was predicted by perceived partner responsiveness, data source was added as a four-category (Samples A–D) factorial predictor, and the interaction between data source and perceived partner responsiveness was tested
The results confirmed that perceived partner responsiveness significantly positively predicted affectionate touch, b = 0.26, SE = 0.07, df = 647.43, t = 3.74, p < .001, 95% CI = [0.12, 0.40], above and beyond sexual intercourse, b = 0.25, SE = 0.03, df = 787.59, t = 7.42, p < .001, 95% CI = [0.19, 0.32], and the effect was again not moderated by data source, F(3, 756.51) = 0.42, p =
Summary
Affectionate touch is an important behavior for establishing and maintaining social bonds. It occurs frequently within close relationships, from infancy through older adulthood. Empirical work in relationship science has established affectionate touch as a common, normative behavior within close romantic relationships (Jones & Yarbrough, 1985; Suvilehto et al, 2015; van Anders et al, 2013) that can be distinct from sexual touch (Gulledge et al, 2004), and promotes individual and relational well-being (Jakubiak & Feeney, 2017). In their review, Jakubiak and Feeney (2017) outline a framework of theoretical mechanisms through which receiving affectionate touch may be associated with relationship quality
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