Adult playfulness is a personality trait that involves reframing situations to make them more interesting, entertaining, or intellectually stimulating.
There’s a growing interest in studying playfulness in adults, especially in romantic relationships. Recent studies show playfulness can impact partner similarities, relationship satisfaction, and love styles.
In a recent study, researchers expanded on existing research in two key ways:
- They explored the relationships between different facets of playfulness and two models that describe how individuals experience and behave in romantic relationships: attachment styles and romantic jealousy.
- They examined these relationships in mixed-gender and same-gender couples and tested whether the findings were consistent across these groups.
To conduct this research, they used the OLIW model of playfulness, which includes four facets: Other-directed, Lighthearted, Intellectual, and Whimsical. They applied this model to understand how playfulness, romantic attachment, and experiences of romantic jealousy interact within couples.
Attachment styles explain how people form and maintain close relationships. These styles are described along two dimensions: anxiety and avoidance. Initially, it was believed that attachment styles are formed during early childhood through interactions with primary caregivers and remain stable throughout life. However, later research has shown that attachment styles can change and are specific to romantic partners.
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For over four decades, playfulness has been studied in romantic relationships. Betcher’s interviews with couples highlighted how intimate play fosters bonding, trust, and intimacy. Subsequent research has consistently linked playfulness to various aspects of romantic life, including sexual preferences and sexuality.
Jealousy refers to how people experience and react differently to perceived or actual threats to their romantic relationships. There’s strong evidence that jealousy affects relationship experiences. However, its link to relationship satisfaction is mixed. Some researchers suggest that when shown in response to threats, jealousy can signal a partner’s care and investment, possibly leading to higher satisfaction.
Researchers gathered data from mixed-gender and same-gender couples and used the APIM model to analyze relationships between these factors within and between partners.
Previous studies indicated that playfulness impacts romantic relationships similarly for both men and women, meaning gender did not seem to influence the relationship between playfulness and romantic outcomes. However, this conclusion was based only on data from mixed-gender couples.
The authors noted, “We collected the first data on playfulness in same-gender couples, allowing us to examine gender invariance within and between same- and mixed-gender partner constellations and to expand our understanding of playfulness in same-gender relationships.”
After analyzing data from 332 mixed-gender and 139 same-gender couples, researchers found no significant differences in playfulness between the two groups.
The Actor-Partner Interdependence Model (APIM) analyses revealed that Other-directed, Lighthearted, and Intellectual playfulness were linked to lower attachment insecurities in the individuals themselves (actors) but did not affect their partners.
Regarding jealousy, all types of playfulness were associated with lower emotional jealousy, but Whimsical playfulness was positively related to cognitive and behavioral jealousy in the individuals themselves (actors).
Partners reported greater cognitive jealousy when their partner was high in Lighthearted, whereas partners from Whimsical high scorers reported lower emotional jealousy.
Study author Kay Brauer of Martin Luther University Halle said, “To our knowledge, this was the first study examining dyadic data of same-gender and mixed-gender couples.”
“The findings are invariant between same-gender and mixed-gender couples. Our study extends the knowledge on how playfulness relates to experiences in close relationships in mixed-gender and same-gender couples. We discuss implications (e.g., Signal Theory of Playfulness) and future directions.”
Journal Reference:
- Brauer, K., Sendatzki, R. & Proyer, R.T. Extending the study of playfulness in romantic life: Analyzing associations with attachment and jealousy in same-gender and opposite-gender couples. Sci Rep 14, 20190 (2024). DOI: 10.1038/s41598-024-70979-2
Source: Tech Explorist
