Several assumptions make up social exchange theory:
- Social behaviors involve social exchanges of value.
- People are motivated to retain some value (reward) when they have to give something up (cost).
- People pursue social exchanges where they receive more rewards than their costs.
- Rewards and costs can be material or immaterial goods.
What is the purpose of social exchange theory?
Social exchange theory proposes that social behavior is the result of an exchange process. The purpose of this exchange is to maximize benefits and minimize costs. ... Social exchange suggests that it is the valuing of the benefits and costs of each relationship that determine whether or not we choose to continue a social association.
What is the individualistic theory of social exchange?
Many psychologists consider the social exchange theory as highly individualistic. According to this theory the individual measures all social interactions against personal gains that he achieves. All individual decisions and actions are based on self-serving motivation. Behaviour (profit) = reward of interaction – cost of interaction.
What is social exchange theory of interracial marriage?
Social exchange theory was the first framework developed for understanding intermarriage decisions (Davis, 1941; Merton, 1941). It implies that if whites face higher social costs of interracial, black–white marriage, as compared to blacks, then the white spouse must be compensated for such marriages to actually occur.
Does social exchange theory predict partner power?
Social exchange theory predicts that the partner with greater personal resources (e.g., income, education) should have greater power (Peplau, 1991 ), and results of a number of studies have supported this view.
How do you explain the social exchange theory?
According to social exchange theory, a person will weigh the cost of a social interaction (negative outcome) against the reward of that social interaction (positive outcome). These costs and rewards can be material, like money, time or a service.
What is social exchange theory example?
A simple example of social exchange theory can be seen in the interaction of asking someone out on a date. If the person says yes, you have gained a reward and are likely to repeat the interaction by asking that person out again, or by asking someone else out.
What are the three main components of social exchange theory?
It actually suggests that we feel positively or negatively about our relationships because of a combination of three factors: Cost-benefit analysis. Comparison level. Comparison level of alternatives.
Why is social exchange theory important?
ADVANTAGES OF SOCIAL EXCHANGE THEORY It explains that individuals minimize their costs and maximizes their rewards within a relationship. It tells one how to sustain and keep relationships. It is a timely and systematic approach. The theory is almost applicable in all situations.
What are the types of social exchange?
There are three forms within these matrices: Reciprocity, Generalized Exchange, and Productive Exchange. In a direct exchange, reciprocation is confined to the two actors. One social actor provides value to another one and the other reciprocates.
Who proposed social exchange theory?
Exchange: Social Social exchange theory is one of the major theories of social interaction in the social sciences. Homans, Blau, and Emerson were the key theorists who developed the original theories of social exchange.
What are the four stages through which relationships can develop according to social exchange theory set )?
Bargaining: partners exchange costs and benefits, they negotiate and identify what is the most profitable. Commitment: the relationship is stable and maintained by predictable exchange of rewards. Institutionalization: partners have established norms in terms of costs and benefits. They now settle down.
How does social exchange theory apply to marriage?
That is, from a social exchange theory perspective, each partner's attraction to the relationship is assumed to vary directly with the perceived rewards of the marital relationship and inversely with the perceived costs (Thibaut & Kelley, 1959).
What is the social exchange theory quizlet?
What is Social Exchange Theory? Social Exchange theory looks at the economics of relationships; how people evaluate the costs and rewards of their current relationships. SET: 'Costs' & 'Rewards' -Costs: the negative aspects of a relationship such as: time invested, stress, energy, attention*
How does the social exchange theory view family?
In families, a social exchange perspective argues that family relationships become inter- dependent, or interactional. In this respect, power becomes characteristic of the relationship dyad and understanding family relationships includes assessing the power that is held among the actors in those relationships.
How do social exchange theory and social norms explain helping behaviors?
How do social exchange theory and social norms explain helping behavior? Social exchange theory is the view that we help others because it is in our own self-interest; in this view, the goal of social behavior is maximizing personal benefits and minimizing costs.
What is an example of a social trap?
A social trap is any situation that rewards immediate actions that will have undesired effects in the long run. Personal examples of social traps are quite common. Many people are enticed into drinking too much at parties, because their pleasure is immediate and their discomfort a hangover comes later.
What is the concept of social exchange?
Social exchange theory is a concept based on the notion that a relationship between two people is created through a process of cost-benefit analysis. ...
What are the assumptions of social exchange theory?
The theory’s core assumptions establish a fundamental foundation within social exchange theory — one size does not fit all. A person’s expectations, as set by comparison levels, allow the theory to be viewed on a sliding scale, one that adjusts on an individual basis. If an individual’s personal relationship samples are set on a certain level, he or she will tend to use this level as a baseline for future relationships.
What is the third assumption of the payoff theory?
A third assumption is that individuals tend to calculate the profit and cost before engaging. Finally, the theory assumes that people know that this “payoff” will vary from person to person, as well as with the same person over time.
What is the purpose of social exchange theory?
The basic purpose of exchange theory is to maximize benefits and minimize costs. In sociology, social exchange theory is a very major theoretical perspective
Who was the first to discover the theory of social exchange?
Sociologist George Homans (1961 ) and Peter Blau were the first to find out the theory of social exchange theory in the late 1950s and early 1960s.
How does the theory of balance work?
The theory is fairly simple, allowing most people to understand its general assumptions and relate to them. When a person becomes knowledgeable of this theory, he or she can work towards having more balanced relationships. This knowledge can also provide awareness of what one’s own costs are to other people.
What happens if two parties are mutually dependent?
If this dependence provides a positive outcome then the relationship will be held in good terms and will be continued and if in case the outcome is negative, the two parties won’t work together.
When there is an exchange between two parties, what is the individual looking out for?
Whenever there occurs an exchange between two parties, then an individual is looking out for their own economic and psychological needs or benefits. They want to satisfy themselves that their needs are being fulfilled. And when there is any social exchange, then there is some sort of interdependence on one another.
Is the theory of a symbiotic relationship timely?
It is a timely and systematic approach. The theory is almost applicable in all situations.
What are the theories of social exchange?
Various social exchange theories concern outcome-oriented standards for enacting and judging relationships. Homans's distributive justice applied elementary principles of operant (Skinnerian) behaviorism to social interdependence, holding that individuals expect rewards proportionate to costs. From this came equity theory (Adams, Walster (later Hatfield), Walster, and Berscheid) that argued that people seek fair ratios of outcome to investment. Although couched in reward–cost terms, inequity theoretically relates to dissonance (Sect. 3.1), creating a drive to reduce it. The exchange idea in relationships developed into interdependence theory (Kelley and Thibaut), that posits that human interactions follow from degrees, symmetries, bases, and kinds of dependence. In Levinger's stage theory of relationships, people begin with a cost–benefit analysis. Whether close relationships switch (Sect. 2.2) or not (Sect. 4.2) to a nonexchange (i.e., communal) orientation, people in relationships do control their own and the other's outcomes, addressed by theories of intent attribution (Sect. 3.1), emotion in relationships (Berscheid), and accommodation to disruption (Rusbult). Even outside close relationships, outcome dependence motivates individuation (Fiske), undercutting stereotypes. Control over one's outcomes appears in a cost–reward model (Dovidio, Piliavin) of helping.
What is the exchange idea in relationships?
The exchange idea in relationships developed into interdependence theory (Kelley and Thibaut), that posits that human interactions follow from degrees, symmetries, bases, and kinds of dependence. In Levinger's stage theory of relationships, people begin with a cost–benefit analysis.
What is direct exchange?
Although generalized exchange was a particular interest of early anthropological exchange theorists, the study of direct exchange relations has dominated research and theorizing in sociology until quite recently. Direct exchanges can be negotiated or reciprocal in form; both have been the subject of long-term research programs. In negotiated exchange, actors jointly negotiate the terms of an agreement (usually binding) through a series of offers and counteroffers. Each agreement comprises a discrete transaction that provides benefits for both actors. In reciprocal exchange, actors perform individual acts that benefit another, such as giving assistance or advice, without negotiation and without knowing whether, when, or to what extent the other will reciprocate. Exchange relations develop when beneficial acts prompt reciprocal benefit.
What are the two exchange-based approaches of the psychological contract and social exchange theory?
The two exchange-based approaches of the psychological contract and social exchange theory have also been used to explain different attitudes and behaviors across work statuses. It has been argued that there are a number of factors that affect the exchange of contributions for inducements across part-time and full-time employees. For example, part-time employees receive fewer inducements such as benefits, task variety, and opportunities for advancement; part-time employees have lower expectations about what they should get from the organization; and part-time employees are more likely to be subject to “Theory X”-type management. These factors will have the effect of creating a perception of perceived inequity or psychological contract violation across work statuses, and they are more likely to lead to part-time employees developing economic relationships, rather than social exchange relationships, with employers. This, in turn, will affect outcome attitude and behaviors such as job satisfaction and organizational citizenship behavior.
What are the obstacles to social exchange theory?
One major obstacle in the empirical evaluation of the concept is the subjective nature of costs and rewards, which may differ in value between different people, over time, or through comparisons with other people or rewards.
What are the theoretical and empirical developments of sociology?
Theoretical and empirical developments include the extension of their work to the analysis of power and dependence, social networks, reciprocity, fairness, social cohesion, and solidarity. The work on social exchange in sociology has clear links to research on social capital, particularly work on networks, norms, and trust.
Who developed the exchange paradigm?
In addition to these sources of influence, the major works of several psychologists and anthropologists provided further impetus to the development of the exchange paradigm in sociology. The dominant contribution from psychology is the work of John Thibaut and Harold Kelley ( 1959 ), The Social Psychology of Groups.
What is Social Exchange Theory?
Social Exchange Theory discusses an individual’s outcome to different social interactions by examining the exchange of resources during social interactions. These resources can be material goods and services or an exchange of social value. This theory is highly reliant on reciprocity for whatever costs are incurred by the individual.
Why does Steve continue to interact with the grocery store?
Steve continues to interact with the grocery store and its owners because the alternatives are not better than the outcome of his current interaction. Overall, the Social Exchange Theory asserts that humans seek to maximize rewards with minimal costs. This is achieved through analyzing the outcome of social interactions.
Is social exchange theory relevant?
Despite any criticism, Social Exchange Theory remains relevant within social psychology schools and continues to spawn research. With a firm background in fields such as anthropology, economics, and psychology, this theory is likely to remain an area of interest in many fields for years to come.
History and Definition of The Theory
CORE Assumptions of Social Exchange Theory
- The foundation of social exchange theory rests on several core assumptions regarding human nature and the nature of relationships. The first assumption is that humans tend to seek out rewards and avoid punishments. Another tenet is the assumption that a person begins an interaction to gain maximum profit with minimal cost — the individual is driven...
How This Theory Works
- The theory’s core assumptions establish a fundamental foundation within social exchange theory — one size does not fit all. A person’s expectations, as set by comparison levels, allow the theory to be viewed on a sliding scale, one that adjusts on an individual basis. If an individual’s personal relationship samples are set on a certain level, he or she will tend to use this level as a baseline f…
Putting The Theory Into Practice
- From a sociological standpoint, applying the metrics that collectively build social exchange theory can be a great tool to analyze relationships and human behavior. The dynamics that go into making this theory work can be useful for sociologists to develop their own theories and concepts regarding the ways in which humans behave with each other. Make use of the social exchange t…