The Psychology of Friendship

the Adams-Blieszner-Ueno integrative conceptual framework for friendship research (Figure 3.1), depicts friendship patterns as dynamic and contextualized. Individual characteristics, consisting of social structural positions and psychological dispositions, which affect each other through interpretation and internalization, lead to the development o

people feel varying degrees of closeness among their various friends. The emotional closeness to friends often relates to how similar they are in their interests, values, and personality traits (Floyd, 1995; Montoya, Horton, & Kirchner, 2008; Morry, 2007; Suitor, 1987).

Importantly, adolescents’ friendships also serve as training models to prepare for intimate romantic relationships (Fraley, Roisman, Booth-LaForce, Owen, & Holland, 2013; Simpson, Collins, Tran, & Haydon, 2007

Similarity in traits, attitudes, or interests among friends may be a byproduct of social homogamy (e.g., meeting in the neighborhood where people of similar socioeconomic status and political orientation live; McPherson et al., 2001) and further environmental factors influencing friendship formations (e.g., meeting during shared leisure activities

Friends typically are defined as people who mutually select each other for friendship; with whom one shares companionship, interests, and values; in whom one can confide; and for whom one feels concern and affection. Friends are expected to be trustworthy with respect to giving solid advice and holding confidences, to engage in appropriate levels o

More extraverted people dress more stylishly, behave more confidently, and express more positivity, for instance through smiling—factors that make extraverted people attractive to others and make others like them better (Back et al., 2011

“there is nothing intrinsically natural about separating all human beings into two opposing categories on the basis of one physical attribute of their overall being-in-the-world” (Rawlins, 2009, p. 125

the average number of relationships in social networks ranges from 3 to 40 (Wrzus et al., 2013

Interactive motifs are a person’s typical cognitive, affective, and behavioral propensities to think, feel, and act in certain ways across situations. Applied to relationships, interactive motifs reflect how individuals think about other people, respond to them emotionally, and engage with them.

Individuals develop strategies to make contacts, to start friendships, and to maintain but also to end voluntarily these relationships. Behavioral motifs vary by gender, social status, life stage, family status, and other personal characteristics. They are highly influenced by personality traits that moderate openness to new contacts