Money & society · 2015
Do people give more unasked-for advice to friends they feel closer to?
Yes, that was the pattern in two studies using hypothetical situations. Undergraduate students and members of the general population tended to give more unasked-for advice to friends they felt closer to than to friends they felt less close to. The friends were expressing discontent without asking for advice. This shows a link, not that closeness causes advice giving.
Details
Advice can be part of supporting a friend, but the abstract notes that unasked-for advice can also harm the recipient and the relationship. That is background context, not a harm measured in these studies.
In two studies, undergraduate students and members of the general population responded to hypothetical statements from friends expressing discontent without asking for advice. Participants tended to give more unasked-for advice to friends they felt closer to. The finding establishes an association, not that feeling closer caused them to offer advice.
Overall, participants gave unasked-for advice very early in the supportive exchange in approximately 70% of cases. This rate describes responses to hypothetical situations, not observations of everyday conversations. The abstract does not establish why closeness and advice giving were linked or how the friends receiving the advice would have felt.
What do you think?
Good conversations begin with curiosity.
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