Hey everyone! Do you have a best friend? If you are lucky, have you managed to get to know each other well? This quiz is especially for you! These questions can be a hint for the conversation for you, and if you know each other really well, you can test yourself by answering all of them! Before we get into the quiz, let’s talk a bit about what friendship is.
Friendship is a relationship of mutual affection between people. It is a stronger form of interpersonal bond than an “acquaintance” or an “association”, such as a classmate, neighbor, coworker, or colleague.
Most people think their friends know them well. However, studies have shown that in most cases it is an illusion related to the desire to improve self-esteem. By believing that our friends care about us, we build our self-esteem.
Friendship in the sociological context is strongly related to hostility. A common enemy is very effective in cementing bonds between friends, and one of the tools for this is a rumor. Friends tend to exaggerate the negative qualities of their enemies and ignore their positive qualities.
Friendships are made in different ways depending on culture and religious affiliation. Some friendships are made by asking: “Would you like to be my friend?” or otherwise, it is sometimes accompanied by promises and oaths. The formula of blood brotherhood is less and less common. Friendship, love, caring, and participation in the fate of others are not accidental, but absolutely necessary for spiritual maturity and happiness. If someone is unable to make and maintain friendships, such a deficiency may be due to a somatic, mental or spiritual illness.
Research also shows that friendship can have a genetic background: the strongest bonds connect us with people genetically similar to us. This may explain the existence of racial prejudice and other forms of xenophobia at the same time. The very act of making friends also has a biological basis – it is closely related to the so-called first impression. Research shows that we make an unconscious decision about the desire to get to know a person better within just 10 minutes from the first contact with them.
The understanding of friendship in children tends to be more heavily focused on common activities, physical proximity, and shared expectations. These friendships provide opportunities for playing and practicing self-regulation. Most children tend to describe friendship in terms of things like sharing, and children are more likely to share with someone they consider to be a friend. As children mature, they become less individualized and are more aware of others. They gain the ability to empathize with their friends and enjoy playing in groups. They also experience peer rejection as they move through the middle childhood years. Establishing good friendships at a young age helps a child to be better acclimated to society later on in their life.
In adolescence, friendships become more giving, sharing, frank, supportive, and spontaneous. Adolescents tend to seek out peers who can provide such qualities in a reciprocal relationship. They avoid peers whose problematic behavior suggests they may not be able to satisfy these needs. Personal characteristics and dispositions are also features sought by adolescents when choosing with whom to begin a friendship. Relationships begin to maintain a focus on shared values, loyalty, and common interests, rather than physical concerns like proximity and access to play things that characterize childhood.
Friendship in adulthood provides companionship, affection, and emotional support. It contributes positively to mental well-being and improved physical health. Adults may find it particularly difficult to maintain meaningful friendships in the workplace. The workplace can crackle with competition, so people learn to hide vulnerabilities and quirks from colleagues. Work friendships often take on a transactional feel. It is difficult to say where networking ends and where the real friendship begins. Most adults value the financial security of their jobs more than friendship with coworkers. The majority of adults have an average of two close friends. Numerous studies with adults suggest that friendships and other supportive relationships do enhance self-esteem.
Older adults continue to report high levels of personal satisfaction in their friendships as they age, even as the overall number of friends tends to decline. This satisfaction is associated with an increased ability to accomplish activities of daily living, as well as a reduced decline in cognitive abilities, decreased instances of hospitalization, and better outcomes related to rehabilitation. Research within the past four decades has now consistently found that older adults reporting the highest levels of happiness and general well-being also report strong, close ties to numerous friends.
No matter what age your friend is, do you know them well? You can check it out in this quiz. Answer twenty questions and find out now! You can take this quiz with your best friend and see if you are right. It can also be a good suggestion to get to know each other better. We hope you enjoy this quiz!
