Factor Structure of Social Relationships: An Examination of Relational Models and Resource Exchange Theories

Although several accounts of elementary relational forms have been proposed, little empirical research has attempted to test, refine and compare them. Such research can strengthen claims that there are relational universals, and can provide a unifying framework and conceptual currency for further study. In the present study, the factor structure of 500 social relationships sampled from 50 undergraduate subjects was examined using items representing relational forms proposed by Fiske (1991) and Foa & Foa (1974). The results are interpreted in light of their implications for the internal organization of the two theories, the interrelations of the two theories, and the relations of both theories to common dimensions of social relationships. It is argued that theories of the basic forms of social relationship must be revised in light of the empirical associations of their elements, and that the time is now ripe for confirmatory tests of these forms.