When two members of a relationship (platonic, romantic, professional, etc.) value integrations more or less than the other member, conflict can arise.

The theme of this discourse is simple, people value a connection with other people. The integration-separation tension is commonly referred to as autonomy-connections, interdependence-independence, intimacy-autonomy, closeness-seperateness, and several others. These three tensions were first identified by Baxter and Montgomery and serve to explain how a dialectic tensions does not have to be either/or, but can exist in a both/and form of a relationship. Throughout the last 20 years since the Relational Dialectics Theory was originally proposed, studies have identified the same 3 tensions and contradictions existing in nearly all relationship forms. It’s also important to note that Baxter and Braithwaite refer to contradictions in their text as discourses, because not all oppositions are psychological needs or functions. In later research Baxter and another colleague, Dawn Braithwaite, describe the theory further, “the core premise of dialogism, and of RDT, is that meaning making is a process that emerges from the struggle of different, often competing discourses' (Baxter and Braithwaite, 2010, Pg. RDT looks to better explain and understand social life and relationships through the contradictions of which they are comprised. Therefore, RDT is not recognized as a true theory because it does not consist of axioms, propositional arguments, or the formal structures of true theories. However, Baxter and Montgomery did not propose RDT as a true theory, but rather a collection of assumptions. While the Relational Dialectics Theory was originally introduced with a wide range of concepts drawn from dialogism, the main tenet that has been focused on throughout Montgomery, Baxter and other scholars’ works is the concept of contradiction. Meaning that one would not understand hunger if he/she did not know what it was like to be full. 'Bakhtin believed that in order for one thing to exist, its counterpoint or contradiction also had to exist. Bahktin developed the theory of personal dialogue and dialectics. Montgomery and Baxter’s work was influenced by the Russian philosopher Mikhail Bakhtin and is referenced throughout their works often. 776) ” throughout their initial publication Relating: Dialogue and Dialectics. However, “there is a heavy reliance on marital and family research (Banski, 1997, Pg. Baxter and Montgomery developed the theory with the purpose of applying the theory to all types of relationships, including marital, romantic, platonic, and familial relationships. The Relational Dialectics Theory was developed in 1996 by professors Barbara Montgomery and Leslie Baxter in their text, Relating: Dialogues and Dialectics.

The theory itself is made up of four key assumptions: contradiction, change, praxis, and totality. Other theories only account for one of the tensions as being true/accurate.

Different from other theories and studies is that the Relational Dialectics Theory acknowledges that these tensions can exist in a “both/and” form in any relationship. These include integration-separation, expression-non-expression, and novelty-predictability. There are three main relational discourses or tensions identified throughout studies of RDT. It specifically focuses on the role that conflict and contradiction play in relationships. ” Relational Dialectics Theory (RDT) looks closely at the relational tensions involved in interpersonal communication and relationships. “Dialectical thinking directs people to observe the interactions within a relationship, among its individual members, as well as outside a relationship, as its members interact with the larger social and cultural systems in which they are embedded. Relational Dialectics theory was founded by the concept of dialectics.

4 Key Assumptions of Relational Dialectics Theory.

Relational dialectic theory