Social Exchange Theory

Submitted By FirstInFlight82
Words: 445
Pages: 2

In everyday interactions people are always looking to have a positive experience among those with whom they interact. According to the Social Exchange theory, with each interaction an individual has with another, that individual attempts to maximize the positive outcomes and minimize the negative. The purpose of this paper is to apply the Social Exchange theory to an authentic real life situation to best illustrate the theory and the key concepts that it holds. In applying the social exchange theory from demonstration, to application, to then explanation, a better understanding in terms of the value of the theory will be shown, as well as the function that it has in everyday life.

An episode that best characterizes the Social Exchange theory is one that involved my ex-girlfriend, and me. We had been having our share of problems when, one day, every argument and disagreement we had culminated into this moment when everything just seemed to explode. She had been angry with me for having to leave to join the military before Christmas and I was angry with her for her being angry trying to better my life. I wanted support, and instead, all I received was a guilt trip about how I was never there for her. After thirty minutes of talking, or rather complaining, we both agreed to disagree. In that instant the two of us had the realization, as many couples do, that it just was not working and the negatives far outweighed the positives. There was no minimizing the negative outcomes because everything had a negative ending. Later, the Social Exchange theory will be applied to this episode, but for now it is best to comprehend how the Social Exchange theory works to fully understand the Social