Guerrero, Close Encounters, 6e
SAGE Publishing, 2021
Chapter 5: Changing Relationships: Stages, Turning Points, and Dialectics
Test Bank
Multiple Choice
1. Chloe and Aidan have known one another for several years, but gradually they’ve
begun to get closer and have moved their relationship to a romantic level. They’ve
begun to attend parties together, host get-togethers, and often finish one another’s
sentences. What stage of Knapp’s theory of coming together would best characterize
Chloe and Aidan’s current relationship?
A. experimenting stage
B. intensifying stage
C. integrating stage
D. bonding stage
2. Which of Knapp’s stages is characterized by extended small talk?
A. integrating stage
B. experimenting stage
C. intensifying stage
D. turning point stage
3. The highest level most relationships reach is the ______ stage.
A. initiating
B. integrating
C. intensifying
D. experimenting
4. A couple in the integrating stage would exhibit which of the following behavior?
A. having sexual intercourse
B. publicly announcing their feelings for each other in a commitment ceremony
C. making their relationship status “Facebook official”
D. revealing personal information for the first time to their partner
5. In the textbook, the authors mention Tolhuizen’s strategies for intensifying
relationships. Which strategy involves asking the partner to talk about the relationship?
A. increased rewards
B. social support
C. direct definitional bid
D. relationship negotiation
6. Which strategy is used the most often to help intensify relationships?
A. social enmeshment
B. suggestive actions
C. tokens of affection
D. increased contact
7. According to the textbook, choosing a friend as godparent for your child is an
indicator that your relationship with your friend is in the ______ stage.
A. bonding
B. integrating
C. intensifying
D. experimenting
8. Mike and Micky decided to have a ceremony to renew their vows to celebrate their
50th anniversary. They recognize that this event signifies a ______ in their relationship.
A. milestone
B. turning point
C. culminating event
D. bonding stage
9. According to the research in your textbook, ______% of friendships follow the linear
type of relationship development predicted by stage theories.
A. 10–20
B. 25–35
Guerrero, Close Encounters, 6e
SAGE Publishing, 2021
C. 40–50
D. 65–75
10. Brenna tells Jacob: “We always spent time together, and that’s great, but I need to
spend time with my friends too.” Which dialectical tension does Brenna discourse
reflect?
A. autonomy-connection
B. revealment-concealment
C. predictability-novelty
D. conventionality-uniqueness
11. The external manifestation of the expression dialectic is called ______.
A. openness-closedness
B. revealment-concealment
C. predictability-novelty
D. inclusion-seclusion
12. The internal manifestation of the uncertainty dialectic is ______.
A. openness-closedness
B. inclusion-seclusion
C. connection-autonomy
D. predictability-novelty
13. Which strategy for dealing with dialectical tensions involves striving to reach a
midpoint between the two ends of the dialectic?
A. moderation
B. topical segmentation
C. reframing
D. selection
14. In Rawlins’s work on dialectics in friendships, the ______ dialectic refers to being
able to accept a friend for who he or she is versus feeling free to offer criticism and
advice.
A. affection-instrumentality
B. ideal-real
C. concealment-criticism
D. judgment-acceptance
15. Which of the following is a dialectical tension that occurs in friendships, according to
Rawlins?
A. public–private
B. social–personal
C. fun–serious
D. similar–different
16. According to Knapp and Vangelisti’s stages of coming together, if you serve as “best
man” or “maid of honor” at your best friend’s wedding, you and your friend have reached
the ______ stage.
A. intensifying
B. bonding
C. experimenting
D. initiating
17. According to Knapp’s coming together stages, romantic couples first are likely to say
“I love you” to each other during the ______ stage.
A. intensifying
B. bonding
C. experimenting
D. ingratiating
18. Arnie and Annie are having trouble managing the tension in their relationship. Annie
uses sarcasm and ambiguous statements to deal with it. Which strategy is Annie using
to manage the tension?
A. selection
B. neutralization
C. disqualification
D. separation
19. According to Knapp’s reversal hypothesis of relational de-escalation, ______.
A. relationships end suddenly
B. relationships go through predictable stages during breakups
C. women are more likely to break up than are men
D. the person who initiates the breakup is most likely to be sorry
20. Research has shown that self-disclosure in international friendships is most effective
in helping develop the relationship if it is accompanied by ______.
A. responsiveness
Guerrero, Close Encounters, 6e
SAGE Publishing, 2021
B. assertion
C. orientation exchange
D. vulnerability
21. The internal manifestation of the dialectic of integration is ______.
A. autonomy–connection
B. risk–reward
C. novelty–predictability
D. openness–closedness
22. The correct sequence for Knapp’s five stages of coming together is ______.
A. initiating, experimenting, bonding, intensifying, and integrating
B. experimenting, initiating, integrating, intensifying, and bonding
C. initiating, experimenting, intensifying, integrating, and bonding
D. initiating, intensifying, experimenting, integrating, and bonding
23. Zeke has stopped texting and replying to Lilly’s messages. It’s like Zeke has just
disappeared from the relationship. This is known as ______.
A. integrating
B. ghosting
C. terminating
D. breaking up
24. When you can stand up for your own rights and tell your partner that
they hurt your feelings, you are able to use ______ effectively.
A. “I” statements
B. response retorts
C. self-disclosure
D. negative assertions
25. Which of the following is true of the judgment-acceptance dialectic?
A. It involves being able to accept friends for who they are.
B. It has been studied more extensively in romances than friendships.
C. It is usually studied in the context of relationship breakups.
D. It means we judge our friends before we can accept them.
26. The initiating stage is to Knapp and Vangelisti’s model as the ______ stage is to
Altman and Taylor’s social penetration model.
A. grave dressing
B. exploratory affective exchange
C. affective exchange
D. stable exchange
1. Autonomy/connection is the internal manifestation of the integration dialectic.
2. Openness/closedness is the internal manifestation of the certainty dialectic.
3. Progress/stagnation is the internal manifestation of the expression dialectic.
4. Risk/reward is the fundamental dialectical tension of close relationships.
5. The coming apart phase of differentiating begins with uncoupling behavior.
6. According to Knapp and Vangelisti, the stages of coming together are the mirror
image of the stages coming apart.
7. Reframing is one of the ways to manage a dialectic tension mentioned in the
textbook.
8. Recent research by Duran and colleagues showed that the autonomy connection
dialectic did not apply to cell phone communication.
9. Moving back and forth from one side of the dialectic to the other to manage the
tension is called cyclical alternation.
10. The “exact exchange” stage is the final stage of relational closeness according to
the social penetration model.
11. Snapchat is a form of small talk.
12. Knapp’s 10-stage outline for the typical pattern of relationship development and
decline follows a typical order; however, the steps can vary in real-life situations.
Essay
1. Turning points are major events in the life of a relationship. Compare and contrast
how the turning point approach is different from the stage approach to relationship
development.
2. According to Baxter and Montgomery, relationships are never completely stable and
are constantly changing. Their theory focuses on discursive tensions. Discuss the
difference between internal and external manifestations of tension.
3. Recreate the Knapp and Vangelisti staircase model of relationship stages. Select four
of the stages and define them.
4. Define and explain the four ways to manage dialectical tensions.
5. There are several ways dialectical tensions exist in friendships. Select three of them
and discuss how they influence the relationship.
6. Communication skills need to be developed and improved. There are several
essential communication people need to form and develop relationships. Select two of
these skills and discuss how they help in developing and maintaining relationships.