Contents
What is exchange in sociology?
Social exchange theory proposes that social behavior is the result of an exchange process. According to this theory, developed by sociologist George Homans, people weigh the potential benefits and risks of social relationships. When the risks outweigh the rewards, people will terminate or abandon that relationship.
Social exchanges are characterized by inter-dependence, that is, the ability to obtain profits in a relationship is contingent on the ability to provide others with rewards. Social exchanges are regulated by norms like reciprocity, justice, and fairness.
How is social exchange theory based upon rational theory?
Rational choice theory supposes that every individual evaluates his/her behavior by that behavior’s worth, which is a function of rewards minus costs. Social exchange theory posits that individuals perform the calculus of worth when decided to form or maintain a relationship with another person.
What are examples of social exchange?
A simple example of social exchange theory can be seen in the interaction of asking someone out on a date. If the person says yes, you have gained a reward and are likely to repeat the interaction by asking that person out again, or by asking someone else out.
However, Homans explicitly took as the major theoretical task the explanation of social phenomena. This emphasis on social behavior and the social structures generated and altered by human social interaction has sustained the influence of social exchange theory in sociology.
How is self-interest related to social exchange theory?
Fulfilling self-interest is often common within the economic realm of the social exchange theory where competition and greed can be common.
What was the importance of Frazer’s theory of social exchange?
Based on economics, Frazer’s theory about social exchange emphasizes the importance of power and status differentiations in social exchange. Frazer’s theory had a particular interest in the cross-cousin marriage.
Throughout this major work, Blau contrasts and compares social exchange processes in simple structures with those in more complex social structures and institutions. The major social forces he analyzes include differentiation, integration, organization, and opposition that sets up the dialectic necessary for the explanation of structural change.