As individuals grow and interact with people outside their families, they establish new, nonfamily relationships. Friendship is a close and caring relationship between two people that is perceived as mutually satisfying and beneficial. Friendship benefits include emotional support, companionship, and coping with major life stressors (Rawlins, 1992, 2008). Children who form successful friendships with others perform better academically and demonstrate fewer aggressive tendencies than those who do not (Doll, 1996; Hartup & Stevens, 1997; Newcomb & Bagwell, 1995; Rawlins, 1994; Weisz & Wood, 2005). And secure, stable friendships and family relationships serve to enhance children’s ability to process communication behaviors (Dwyer et al., 2010).

Although everyone has a personal opinion as to what qualities a friend should possess, research finds agreement on six important characteristics of friendship (Pearson & Spitzberg, 1990): availability (making time for one another), caring (expressing concern for well-being), honesty (being open and truthful), trust (being honest and maintaining confidentiality), loyalty (maintaining the relationship despite disagreements), and empathy (communicating understanding of feelings and experiences). The extent to which friends share these characteristics helps build the relational context of their relationship (see Chapter 1).

Some of the relationships you call “friendships” might actually be more accurately described as social relationships, relationships that are functional within a specific context but are less intimate than friendship. For example, you may have casual work pals with whom you can complain about your boss, people with whom you socialize via your ragtag pick-up hockey team, or a hair stylist you love to visit so that you can engage in celebrity gossip (see Markoff & Sengupta, 2011). Indeed, it’s likely that the vast majority of your six hundred Facebook “friends” are really social acquaintances. Sometimes, these social relationships can become awkward when one partner assumes too much intimacy. For example, someone you barely know in your religious community might expect to be invited to your wedding, or you might encounter unease if you ask a few coworkers to go to happy hour in a corporate culture that discourages outside socialization (DeKay, 2012).