Division of Psychology and Language Sciences, UCL, UK.
Br J Soc Psychol. 2021 Apr;60(2):524-547. doi: 10.1111/bjso.12423. Epub 2020 Oct 16.
The evidence that social relationships are associated with well-being is so strong that it is taken as a 'fact' (Kushlev et al., 2018, Journal of Research in Personality, 74, 124). The bulk of the existing evidence derives from research examining social relationships with close others, such as family, romantic partners, and friends (Dolan et al., 2008, Journal Economic Psychology, 29, 94; Li & Kanazawa, 2016, British Journal of Psychology, 107, 675). However, less is known about how connecting with strangers is associated with well-being, how such connections are represented by people, and what motivates people's desire to connect with strangers. This study aims to examine representations and motivations for social connectedness with strangers in contemporary British cities. To do this, an interview study of 52 city-dwellers living in Britain's two largest cities, London and Birmingham, was conducted. The Grid Elaboration Method (GEM) (Joffe & Elsey, 2014, Review of General Psychology, 18, 173), a free association and interview technique, was applied. Thematic analysis revealed that representations of strangers vacillate between 'good' and 'bad', are built upon the 'self/other' thema, are shaped by the contextual factors place, time, and technology, and are motivated by a desire to 'matter'. This work makes a key contribution to the study of social connectedness in cities and can inform effective urban policy.
社会关系与幸福感之间存在关联，这一证据确凿，以至于人们将其视为“事实”（Kushlev 等人，2018 年，《人格研究杂志》，第 74 卷，第 124 页）。现有证据主要来源于研究亲密他人（如家人、恋人、朋友）的社会关系（Dolan 等人，2008 年，《经济心理学杂志》，第 29 卷，第 94 页；Li 和 Kanazawa，2016 年，《英国心理学杂志》，第 107 卷，第 675 页）。然而，人们对与陌生人建立联系如何与幸福感相关、人们如何表达这种联系以及是什么激发了人们与陌生人建立联系的愿望知之甚少。本研究旨在考察当代英国城市中与陌生人建立社会联系的表现形式和动机。为此，对居住在英国两个最大城市伦敦和伯明翰的 52 名城市居民进行了访谈研究。采用了网格细化法（GEM）（Joffe 和 Elsey，2014 年，《普通心理学评论》，第 18 卷，第 173 页），这是一种自由联想和访谈技术。主题分析揭示了陌生人的表象在“好”和“坏”之间摇摆不定，建立在“自我/他人”主题之上，受到地点、时间和技术等背景因素的影响，并且受到“重要性”的驱动。这项工作对城市社会联系的研究做出了重要贡献，并为有效的城市政策提供了信息。
