Final answer:
The idea that the willingness of one party to give determines whether a relationship is rewarding or demoralizing is false. Social exchange theory suggests that relationships are based on a balance of benefits and costs, and include factors like fairness, reciprocity, and self-disclosure.
Step-by-step explanation:
The statement that the deciding factor in whether a relationship is going to be rewarding or demoralizing is how much the other party is willing to give is false. According to social exchange theory, relationships are maintained based on a cost-benefit analysis. While reciprocation, or how much each party is willing to give, plays a role, the deciding factor of a rewarding relationship involves maximizing the benefits and minimizing the costs rather than just the willingness to give from one side. Relationships are more complex, with factors like fairness, reciprocity, self-disclosure, and attraction all influencing the dynamics of human interactions.
For example, experimental data shows that even in games designed to test economic behavior, players often reject unfair offers, showing that people value fairness and are not solely driven by self-interest. In addition, self-disclosure contributes to intimacy and, therefore, to the health of a relationship. So, the health of a relationship is not based solely on how much one party is willing to give, but on the overall balance of what each person receives in return for their contributions.