A qualitative approach to understanding the everyday difference between acquaintanceship and friendship: how western organizational members discriminate these concepts through communicative interaction

Abstract

Stewart & Bennett posited the term 'friend, ' used by members of U.S. American culture, 'may refer to anyone from a passing acquaintance to a lifetime intimate' (p. 100-101). Although American use of the term illustrates broad applicability as acceptable, Americans describe the label as having different meanings depending on those to whom they apply it. This qualitative research study utilizes narrative inquiry to gain a better understanding of the everyday lived experience of U.S. American organizational members' friendships and acquaintanceships within the organizational setting and how they perceive the way they discern between friends and acquaintances inside an organization in comparison to those interpersonal relationships in their everyday social world. Through thematic analysis of capta from the conversational interviews of seven co-researchers, two themes arose: American organizational members have difficulty identifying 'friend, ' and differentiate 'friend' from 'organizational friend' by whether the relationship is primarily based in an infra or supra-contextual setting.