Nessa and Ian are married, but at first they just noticed each other from across the room at a work function. Illustrate their likely progress through the stages of their relationship coming together using Knapp’s model of relationship development, briefly describing what occurs in each stage.

What will be an ideal response?

Nessa and Ian’s relationship began in the initiating stage. They noticed each other but then had to indicate that they were interested in making contact. One might have smiled at the other. After they made that contact, they entered the experimenting stage. They likely engaged in small talk to find topics of shared interest. After some time in the experimenting stage, they progressed to the intensifying stage. They might have had some inside jokes and started expressing greater commitment to each other. Next was the integrating stage, at which they and their friends formally acknowledged their relationship. The final stage was the bonding stage, in which they publicly expressed their commitment to each other through engagement and marriage.