Spatial ecology: Its effects on the choice of friends and enemies

The present research examined relationships between physical distance, frequency of face-to-face contacts, and the probability that individuals would be chosen as friends or enemies. Consistent with previous research, the probability of being chosen as a friend increased as the distance between people decreased. There was also a positive linear relationship between the frequency of contact and the strength of linking. In contrast, the probability of being chosen as a disliked individual was even more dependent upon physical distance (more disliked than liked individuals lived close to the subjects), but the strength of disliking was unrelated to the frequency of face-to-face contact. Friends also tended to live farther away from the subjects the longer the latter had lived in their residences, but the distance that disliked individuals lived from the subjects did not depend upon time. The overall pattern of results was consistent with an “environment-spoiling” hypothesis which proposed that many negative interpersonal relationships primarily occur because the actions of specific others spoil one's living environment, whereas most positive interpersonal relationships result from frequent face-to-face contacts.