1. RESULTS In both studies, greater anticipated mobility significantly predicted reduced relationship prioritization, even after controlling for demographics like age, sex, parental education, and religiosity. Interestingly, for younger students (in their first and second years of college), a combination of all 3 anticipated mobility items was the strongest predictor of relationship prioritization, but more advanced students showed an effect only for total number of anticipated moves. Life Out of Balance: How Anticipated Residential Mobility Impacts Decision Making in the Domains of Career and Relationships INTRODUCTION Residential mobility, or making a permanent move from one location to another, is a common experience for Americans, particularly young adults just starting a career (U.S. Census Bureau, 1999). Frequent movers have been found to approach their social world differently than non-movers, tending to prefer broad and shallow social networks that require minimal obligation (see Oishi, 2010). The origin of these differences is not yet fully understood. One possibility is that moving makes it more difficult to accomplish relationship goals, causing movers to change their relationship strategies and possibly to prioritize relationships less. The present research examines this hypothesis by looking at the effect of imagined future mobility on perception of relationships and social goals. DISCUSSION After controlling for several demographic factors that might influence relationship prioritization and even selecting a subpopulation of students who would be expected to put greater emphasis on relationships, anticipated mobility remained a significant predictor of relationship prioritization in a series of hypothetical scenarios that reflect tradeoffs between career/personal and relationship goals. These data provide preliminary evidence that one of the mechanisms by which residential mobility might impact social networks is through its effect on relationship prioritization. Specifically, mobility may lead to increased prioritization of career and personal goals and reduced emphasis on relationship goals. Future research is needed to investigate the causal chain that leads to the observed association between anticipated mobility and relationship prioritization. METHOD REFERENCES Oishi, S. (2010). The psychology of residential mobility: Implications for the self, social relationships, and well-being. Perspectives on Psychological Science, 5, 5-21. U.S. Census Bureau (1999). Population profile of the United States. Retrieved November 11, 2010, from http://www.census.gov/population/www/pop-profile/files/1999/chap03.pdf. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS: This research was partially funded by a grant from the University of Virginia Quantitative Collaborative. HYPOTHESIS Anticipated future mobility will predict reduced prioritization of relationship goals, even after controlling for important demographic variables. Casey Eggleston and Shigehiro Oishi University of Virginia Study 1 Study 1. A survey of UVa undergraduates in the psychology participant pool. To begin exploring the link between anticipated mobility and relationship goals, we collected data from a sample of 228 undergraduate students (27% male, 59% white). The average age of participants was 18.7 (SD=2.5). The vast majority (92%) of participants were in their first or second years of college and 66 (29%) reported currently being in a romantic relationship. Study 2. A survey of UVa students involved in romantic relationships. To determine whether the link between anticipated mobility and relationship prioritization is still observed among students who are all invested in romantic relationships, we collected data from a sample of 170 UVa students (51% male, 70% white) who reported being involved with a romantic partner. In addition to being all involved in relationships, these students were older (average age 19.6) and farther along in their education (only 59% in first or second years of college) compared to Study 1 participants. Measures. In both studies, participants completed a self-report questionnaire measuring their anticipated future mobility (3 items: likelihood of returning to hometown (reversed), likelihood of moving out of state, and anticipated number of moves in 10 years following graduation), relationship prioritization (see box to the right for items), and demographics. Relationship Prioritization Scale Participants completed 6 forced-choice items that required them to choose between a relationship-oriented goal and a career or personal goal (relationship-oriented choice in bold). 1.Break up with partner to take dream job vs. Turn down dream job for happy relationship 2.Attend okay school near family vs. Attend excellent school far from family 3.Take an undesirable job to be with partner vs. Have a long-distance relationship to take a good job 4.Put fertility before career vs. Put career before fertility 5.Move to unsure employment for partner vs. Have a long-distance relationship for better employment prospects 6.Take an excellent 60-hour-per-week job vs. Take an okay 40-hour-per-week job Relationship Prioritization Scale Participants completed 6 forced-choice items that required them to choose between a relationship-oriented goal and a career or personal goal (relationship-oriented choice in bold). 1.Break up with partner to take dream job vs. Turn down dream job for happy relationship 2.Attend okay school near family vs. Attend excellent school far from family 3.Take an undesirable job to be with partner vs. Have a long-distance relationship to take a good job 4.Put fertility before career vs. Put career before fertility 5.Move to unsure employment for partner vs. Have a long-distance relationship for better employment prospects 6.Take an excellent 60-hour-per-week job vs. Take an okay 40-hour-per-week job Relationship Scale Anticipated Mobility Study 2 – Younger Students Relationship Scale Anticipated Mobility Study 2 – All Students Relationship Scale # Anticipated Moves β = -.15β = -.24β = -.18