Examining the maintenance of friendships: Are there differences between geographically close and long‐distance friends?

Abstract

This study seeks to examine a relationship ignored by most communication researchers: the long‐distance friendship. In this study, geographically close friends reported more maintenance behaviors than long‐distance friends. However, no significant differences were found concerning how satisfied or close they perceive their friendship to be or whether they expected their friendship to continue. Differences in the maintenance behaviors reported for each type of friend suggest that some maintenance behaviors may be more important than others for maintaining a close, satisfactory friendship. Implications for current conceptualizations of relational maintenance are discussed.

Key concepts:

• friendship
• maintenance
• long‐distance relationships
• relational closeness