Money & society · 2015
Can efforts to preserve friendships across income gaps also weaken them?
Yes, according to an interview study in Hungary. Among people discussing substantially poorer or richer friends, the researchers traced how both hiding income differences and treating them as justified could contribute to friendships weakening, despite efforts to preserve them. This is an interpretation of interview accounts, not proof that these approaches always damage friendships.
Details
The study explored how people's ideas about inequality and fairness shaped their handling of friendships across income gaps. Accounts emphasizing equality were linked to efforts to hide inequalities. Accounts emphasizing merit—seeing people's economic positions as deserved—were linked to efforts to justify those inequalities.
Although these approaches differed, the researchers traced how both could undermine the friendships they were meant to protect. They also connected this weakening of friendships to greater separation between social classes.
The evidence comes from interviews in Hungary, rather than an experiment testing these approaches. The abstract does not report the sample size or how common each pattern was, so it cannot establish how often these outcomes occur or whether the same patterns apply elsewhere.
What do you think?
Good conversations begin with curiosity.
You can read comments without an account. Sign in to write.
Loading comments…