Interpersonal Relationships Project

Interpersonal Relationship

Relationships are essential in the daily lives of all human beings across the globe. There is not a single day that individuals go without interacting with other individuals. The movie, “The Break-Up” with Jennifer Aniston and Vince Vaughn shows the signs and examples of the six stages of a relationship.

Contact is the first stage in a relationship model. Through contact and initiation, an individual can show interest in another person and gives signals that show interest in building up some relationship (McAleer). For instance, Gary offers Brooke, a hot dog and invites her for a date after the baseball game.

Involvement is another stage in a relationship model. During this stage, the two parties begin sharing their feelings and emotions. The individuals also engage in activities that they both enjoy (McAleer). For instance, in the movie, Gary and Brooke go for a date in an attempt to know each other more.

Intimacy is the third stage of the relationship model. In this stage, an individual is closest to the other person. Communication is open and more natural. This stage also involves interpersonal commitment and social bonding (McAleer). In the movie, intimacy is displayed when Gary introduces Brooke to his friends and family members.

Deterioration is the fourth stage in a relationship.  During this stage, things tend to fall apart. The bond that the partners previously had weakens (McAleer). For instance, in the film, both parties follow the wrong advice of friends and family members, beginning the war of sexes in an attempt to make each other jealous.

Repair is another stage in a relationship. In this stage, individuals analyze themselves and look for ways to fix their relationship (McAleer). For instance, in an attempt to repair the relationship, Gary cooks a sumptuous dinner, cleans his apartment, and waits to greet his ex-lover with news of his realization.

Dissolution is the final stage in a relationship. The relationship between the two people come to an end (McAleer). For instance, Brooke wants to get away from Gary, travel Europe and invest some time in herself.

In conclusion, communication is vital in any relationship. Communication plays an essential role in creating an atmosphere to know the interests and feelings of loved ones. Several stages are involved in a relationship such as contact, involvement, intimacy, deterioration, repair, and dissolution. However, if individuals can repair their broken relationship, the relationship goes back to the intimacy stage.

Works cited

McAleer, Keely. Conflict in relationships. University of Nebraska at Omaha, 2008.

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Interpersonal Relationships Project
The instructions state: Watch the 2006 movie “The Break-Up” with Jennifer Aniston and Vince
Vaughn. Watch for signs and examples of the above six stages of a relationship. Keep in mind
that the initial stages may be represented in incidents from the past that are being
remembered or retold by the characters. Write a short, 1 ½ page, double spaced essay
addressing all six of the stages of interpersonal relationships.
The six stages included in the assignment are from a different author, but given the
recommended length of the essay, it is easier to write the essay with just these six steps than all
the steps in our text. The assignment lists the six stages, including a short description and the
coordinated stage identified by M. Knapp in our text. Most of the stages are self-explanatory,
however I want to provide a little clarification on stages three, four and five.
• The third stage is Intimacy. The biggest difficulty with this stage is that in this day and
age, people often equate intimacy with sex. That cannot be farther from the truth. All
of the stages of interpersonal relationships are based on an emotional relationship or
connection, not a physical one. Since this stage has nothing to do with physical
intimacy, please do not write that we can tell the couple has entered into the Intimacy
Stage because they sleep together.
• The next stage is Deterioration. This where the relationship starts to go south. It is
important to remember that in real life, this stage may or may not include arguing and
quarreling. I always tell my students that regardless of what happens in this movie, in
real life this stage is often characterized simply by a decrease in contact for any number
of reasons. For example, a friend that you were quite close to in elementary or middle
school, but no longer have contact with, most likely you just drifted apart. Maybe you
went to different schools, or liked different sports or other activities, perhaps one family
simply moved away. Little by little you simply lost contact. This type of deterioration is
much more common than what the movie depicts.
• The fifth stage is Repair. It is important to understand that this stage must start with
each individual. In other words, as long as one individual is thinking that if the other
would just change XYZ everything would be fine, the individual is in the Deterioration
stage, not in the Repair stage. Repair only occurs when the individual realizes what he
or she is doing to contribute to the Deterioration Stage and makes an honest effort to
correct his or her own behavior. If the repair is successful the relationship will move
back to the Intimacy stage, if not it will move on to the Dissolution stage. It is important
to note that not all efforts to repair a relationship are effective.
Last but not least, all of the stages are depicted in the movie. Be sure that you explain exactly
how the movie demonstrates each of the six stages.