Friendships and Professional
Relationships
Chapter 9
“Friendship is born at that moment when one person
says to another: ‘What! You too? I thought I was the
only one.’”
― C.S. Lewis
Why Social Relationships Matter
We Need to Belong—Roy Baumeister
 Seek, form, maintain, and protect strong
social relationships
 We needs bonds that are interactive and
emotionally close
Why Social Relationships Matter
Social Relationships Bring Rewards
 Emotional Rewards
 Emotional support and encouragement
 Happiness
Social Relationships Bring Material Rewards

Money, food, shelter, transportation
Why Social Relationships Matter
 Relationships Bring Health Rewards
 Survival after major health issues
 Happiness and relaxation help us ward off
negative effects of stress
 Friends can look out for our safety and well-being
Why Social Relationships Matter
 Social Relationships Carry Costs
 Time, emotional energy, physical energy, money,
etc.
 Issues arise if costs outweigh benefits (Social
Exchange Theory)
Forming and Maintaining Social Bonds
Attraction Theory: Interpersonal, physical,
social, task (abilities)
oFactors Spark Interpersonal Attraction:
 Personal appearance
 Proximity—how closely together people live or work,
frequency of interaction
 Similarity
 Complementarity—based on differences
Forming and Maintaining Social Bonds
 Uncertainty Reduction Theory
 Berger & Calabrese
 Reducing our uncertainty about another person
 Uncertainty is unpleasant
 Motivation is to reduce uncertainty
 Using communication behaviors to get more information
 Uncertainty is then reduced
The less uncertain we are, the more we will like the person
Forming and Maintaining Social
Bonds
 Predicted Outcome Value Theory—Michael
Sunnafrank
 When we first communicate with others, we try to
determine whether continued comm. With them
will be worth our effort
 If we like someone when we first meet and predict
positive outcomes for future interactions, we will
want to get to know the person better.
 Negative first impression, don’t want to know
person better.
Understanding Relationship
Formation
 Approach Behaviors
 Any forms of attraction to another will cause us to
use approach behaviors
 Comm. behaviors that signal interest in another
person
 Avoidance Behaviors
 Signal a lack of interest in another person
 Forming a relationship doesn’t mean we will
want to maintain that relationship!
Social Exchange Theory
Theories about Costs & Benefits
o Social Exchange Theory
oThibaut & Kelley
oSeek to maintain relationships where benefits
outweigh costs
oComparison Level
oRealistic expectation of what you want and think
you deserve from a relationship
oComparison Level of Alternatives
oBeliefs concerning how good or bad your current
relationship is compared with your perceived
options
Equity Theory
Equity Theory
o Equity Theory
oA good relationship is one in which your costs
and rewards are equal to your partner’s
oIf there is inequality, one partner is overbenefited and one is under-benefited
If both partners get the same level of benefits,
but one partner’s costs are greater, equity
theory predicts the partner with more costs will
not want to maintain the relationship
Relational Maintenance Behaviors
 How we maintain relationships
 Positivity
 Behaviors that make others feel comfortable around us
 Openness
 Willingness to discuss relationship
 Assurances
 Verbal & nonverbal behaviors to illustrate faithfulness and
commitment
Relational Maintenance Behaviors
 Social Networks
 All of the family relationships and friendships
that a person has
 Sharing Tasks
 Performing your fair share of work in the
relationship
Characteristics of Friendship
o
Voluntary
o
Both parties are in relationship by choice
o
Attraction and balance of cost and rewards
influence friendship
o
Require use of maintenance behaviors (e.g.
positivity, openness, task sharing)
Characteristics of Friendship
o
Between Peers
oFormed with
people of equal or similar power status
o“Non-peer” friendship can manifest complications and
power struggle
oGoverned by Rules
oBoth parties have relationship
oImplicit “Rules of Friendship”
expectations
Characteristics of Friendship
Differ by Sex
oGender
differences in friendship values
o“Doing vs. Talking”
Same Sex Friendships
oResearch
results do not characterize ALL
same-sex friendships
oDifferences do not determine friendship
importance
Characteristics of Friendship
Opposite-sex friendships
oBoth
oCan
genders value new perspectives
experience physical or romantic
attraction (e.g. “Friends with benefits”)
Characteristics of Friendship
o Life Span—William
Rawlins, Ohio Univ.
oRole-limited interaction
oMeet for first time, civil
oFriendly Relations
oTalk more, friendlier,
share stories
oMoves toward
friendship
oComm. more social,
share activities
oNascent friendship
oBegin to think of
themselves as friends,
comm. is more personal
oStabilized friendship
oFully established,
share
attitudes, trust
oWaning friendship
oDecline,
may become
distant and casual or
relationship could end
Characteristics of Friendship
oGrow
to Dislike Each Other
oMany
oLife
reasons why this may occur
Circumstances
oMany
aspects of life may cause us to
drift apart from friends.
oDon’t always want rel. to end—may
not have time, energy to spend with
other person
Social Relationships in the Workplace
Co-workers
oLikely to be formed with immediate
peers vs. supervisors
oBond through common experiences
oSignificant
amount of time spent together
oAffects your job satisfaction
Influences on job satisfaction
oSocial dimension vs. task dimension
Social Relationships in the Workplace
o
Superiors and Subordinates
oChallenges
of power difference
oInfluences job satisfaction both positively and negatively
oOpen communication about potential and direct conflicts
o
Sexual Harassment
oQuid pro quo (Latin for “this for that”)
oHostile work environment (sexually offensive or
intimidating)
Social Relationships in the Workplace
o
Clients
oPersonally and professionally
rewarding
oTask-social tensions can occur
oHealth care setting – ethical guideline
oSet clear personal and professional boundaries