Social Exchange Flashcards
Are rewards always tangible, like money? Explain.
No rewards are not always tangible.
- Intangible rewards can include, information & advice, assistance & social support, and affection & love.
What are two major social functions of exchange according to Blau?
Blau argues that social exchange serves more than economic functions, they also can establish bonds of friendship as well as power and status.
What is meant by diminishing marginal utility? Give an example.
Diminishing marginal utility means that the value (utility) of marginal (additional) rewards decreases (diminishes).
- An example would be a federal law enforcement agency whose task was to investigate firms and prepare reports on their compliance with the law
- When one agent encountered a problem, he would ask another agent for help; what he received was advice
- By asking the second agent for advice, the second agent was given status because the first agent acknowledged that the second agent knew more than they did
What two cases does Blau exclude from his analysis?
Blau excludes physical coercion and conformity with internalized norms
How does Social Exchange differ from Economic Exchange?
- Economic exchange has specified obligations.
- For example, when you buy something, there is an agreed upon price.
- But in Social Exchange, there are usually unspecified obligations
- When someone invites you to dinner, you are obligated to invite them back at a future time.
Why does a person reciprocate according to Gouldner?
A person reciprocates due to trust; you trust that the other person will reciprocate in an appropriate way at some future time.
- When it comes to strangers, you usually don’t know if you can trust them or not.
When a person first offers a reward, what does he take? Identify two aspects of this.
When you first offer something, you are taking two kinds of risk:
1. The offer may be rejected
2. The offer may be accepted but not reciprocated
a. What is incremental exchange?
b. Why does it occur?
a. Incremental exchange is the act of you offering more and more if the other person reciprocates more and more.
Name and describe three kinds of costs in exchange.
The three kinds of costs are :
The current costs of getting rewards
The investment of time and rewards
The opportunity costs of having not pursued alternative relationships, and the effort to find and establish an alternative relationship
How do these costs relate to Weiss’ findings concerning divorce?
Often divorcees are ambivalent; they remember the good times, along with the bad; they are conflicted about whether to withstand the costs of divorce or the costs of staying together
Define the following terms in relation to Exchange Theory:
- Comparison with alternatives
- Comparison level
- Relative Deprivation
- Rising expectations
- Equity
- Equality
a. comparison with alternatives : are there potential or actual other partners with whom you might have a more favorable exchange relationship?
b. comparison level : comparing your current relationship with other people’s relationships and choosing to stay or leave based on that comparison
c. relative deprivation : you feel this even when your benefits are relatively good,but they are also less than what someone else is getting
d. rising expectations : you have expectations about rewards based on your experience with them. If the rewards have been increasing over time, you may expect them to keep increasing, and may be disappointed if they don’t increase even if they stay level.
e. equity : the idea that each person’s outputs should be in proportion to their inputs. If one person contributes more, that person should benefit more.
f. equality : everyone shares equally in the benefits.
How is dependency related to power?
- The less dependent has more power
- The more dependent has less power
If an exchange is not balanced, that can lead to a difference in power.
What four conditions allow a person to be independent according to Blau?
(P. F. T. D.)
- Provide more rewards – if you are equally dependent, neither has more power
- Find an alternative source – obtain rewards from someone else if possible
- Take by force – but some things can’t be taken by force
- Do without – decide that the rewards aren’t worth the cost of being bossed around
Why must a person continue to supply rewards in order to maintain power?
If you stop the person has no reason to comply
What may be the effect of making too insistent demands?
Reveals that you are dependent on the other person
