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Personality and Friendships

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Encyclopedia of Personality and Individual Differences

Synonyms

Personality and interpersonal closeness; Personality traits and interpersonal attraction; Personality traits and relationships with friends

Definition

Described as one of basic human needs, friendship is one of the most important relations in people’s lives and a common personal experience (Baumeister and Leary 1995). Personality plays a significant role in initiation, formation, quality, and maintenance, as well as dissolution of relationships between friends. It can also be deeply affected and possibly transformed by these relationships. In this entry, we will present the most fundamental findings about the links between personality and friendship, focusing on the impact exerted by personality (Big Five and Dark Triad traits models) on relationships with friends.

Introduction

At every stage of life, people try to build relationships with others. Social connections are related to support that people receive and give to each other. They have positive influence on one’s health,...

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Acknowledgments

The present work was supported by grant no. 2016/23/G/HS6/01397 from the National Science Center, Poland, awarded to the last author.

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Correspondence to Marta Doroszuk .

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Doroszuk, M., Kupis, M., Czarna, A.Z. (2020). Personality and Friendships. In: Zeigler-Hill, V., Shackelford, T.K. (eds) Encyclopedia of Personality and Individual Differences. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-24612-3_712

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