Journal Reflection Chapter 13 - Relationships with Friends

"Friendship is a voluntary interpersonal relationship characterized by intimacy and liking" (McCornack and Morrison 355). Friendship has several distinguishing characteristics. Friendship is: voluntary, driven by shared interests, characterized by self-disclosure, rooted in liking, and volatile (McCornack and Morrison 355). There are two different types of friendships, communal and agentic. Communal friendships fulfill the need for companionship; they focus primarily on sharing time and activities together (McCornack and Morrison 357). Agentic friendships focus primarily on achieving practical goals together such as work and school projects (McCornack and Morrison 357). Within friendships there are several rules: show support, seek support, respect privacy, keep confidence, defend your friends, avoid public criticism, make your friend happy, manage jealousy, share humor, and maintain equity (McCornack and Morrison 334). Understanding and practicing these rules will help create healthy and fulfilling friendships. In reference to managing friendships, it is important to share activities and self-disclose in order to maintain that bond.

To relate, I have been in a friendship that lacked friendship rules it was very draining and unsatisfying. The friendship eventually ended due to the person not taking my feelings seriously when I verbalized my dislike for their repeated behavior. After experiencing that, I realized how important it is to follow friendship rules and practice maintenance strategies. In conclusion, friendships are very important relationships that fulfill the human desire for connection. Thus, it is important to understand the rules and maintenance strategies in order to create healthy and satisfying friendships.

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