Commitment: A Conceptual Structure and Empirical Application

A conceptual structure for commitment is presented, specifying and clarifying the various meanings of the term as it has been used by sociologists and social psychologists. The possible importance of the concept for social psychology is illustrated by the interpretation of a number of social psychological experiments in terms of commitment processes. The utility of the concept of commitment for the analysis of courtship systems is discussed and the application of the concept of commitment on the level of social systems is illustrated by the use of the proposed conceptual structure in research on cohabitation on a university campus.