minimum resource theory

an analysis of coalition formation processes that assumes that (a) people in group situations will behave hedonistically and thus will be motivated to maximize their power, outcomes, and payoffs by forming coalitions; and (b) individuals’ expectations concerning the division of the coalition’s payoff will conform to an equity norm (see equity theory). The minimum resource theory predicts that the most likely coalition to form in a group will be the one that contains those individuals whose total, combined resources are the fewest needed to control the outcome of the entire group. Compare minimum power theory.

Browse dictionary by letter

a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z

Psychology term of the day

January 14th 2025

coefficient of multiple determination

(symbol: R²) a numerical index that reflects the degree to which variation in a response or outcome variable (e.g., workers’ incomes) is accounted for by its relationship with two or more predictor variables (e.g., age, gender, years of education). More specifically, it is a measure of the percentage of variance in a dependent variable that is accounted for by its relationship with a weighted linear combination of a set of independent variables. Obtained by multiplying the value of the multiple correlation coefficient (R) by itself, the coefficient of multiple determination ranges in value from 0 to 1. Low values indicate that the outcome is relatively unrelated to the predictors, whereas values closer to 1 indicate that the outcome and the predictors are highly related. For example, if R = .40, then the coefficient of multiple determination is .40² = .16 and interpreted to mean 16% of the variance in outcome is explainable by the set of predictors. Also called multiple correlation coefficient squared; squared multiple correlation coefficient.