Social relationships and their importance

Why is it important to reflect on the social relationships we maintain? To begin with, it is impossible to separate the person from the context of it, the person cannot exist without the context and, therefore, the context is an intrinsic part of the person. Within this context are of course social relations.

We relate to our parents, siblings, relatives, friends, acquaintances and other circumstantial people. In addition, we interact in different media such as face-to-face, by phone, through social networks, etc. This implies that we are continuously interacting with people for many hours a day.

For this reason it is very important to reflect on the relationships we maintain with others, with our close and non-close environment. Both those that "I keep with them" and those that "they keep with me", since being two-way, It is important both "what others contribute to me" and to reflect more deeply and see "what I contribute to others". the rest". How can we get these answers? Very simple, with communication.

• Related article: "What is social psychology?"

Much of the human experience is based on social interactions.

Before getting into aspects of communication in relationships, it is important to realize that Our world is not static but changing, new events occur continuously or that are modify. Therefore, the context in which we are changing. In other words, not every day will always be the same, and relationships with others are not going to bring us the same on a personal level either. There will be days when relating to our environment will bring us benefits, for example receiving advice, help, or empathy or that we contribute that benefit other people, and others that subtract us or we subtract for having different opinions or we do not know how to properly manage that relationship interpersonal.

In general terms, these social relationships They will bring us well-being as long as we feel heard, understood, supported and respected.; this will result in us being able to feel emotional well-being. We are social animals, we need the support of our social environment and both verbal and non-verbal communication are essential in a society like the one we have.

• You may be interested in: "The 6 types of social skills"

How to know if there are relationships or people that harm our emotional well-being and how to deal with it?

It is normal for relationships with the people around us to be related to our emotional well-being, since we are more or less concerned about what others communicate to us. However, we must be objective and assess how each relationship with the people around us is and how they help our emotional well-being or to what extent they harm it. If we assess that this relationship harms us, also assess if it is something specific (for example, your mother telling you that the shirt you are wearing that day does not suit you) or if it is something continuous (contempt and disrespect from a friend, for example) that can affect both our emotional well-being and our self-esteem.

If you value that the relationship with a person close to you harms you on a personal level, perhaps it can be considered as a toxic relationship. To deal with this situation, it is advisable to evaluate how important this relationship is to you and observe what is causing you discomfort. It is very possible that by changing aspects of your communication you can resolve the situation, techniques such as setting limits, assertiveness and other social skills can be of great aid.

So, In the vast majority of situations, it is advisable to face this in a communicative and assertive way.; communication is the basis of everything and doing it correctly can make the difference between finding a solution or a confrontation. Starting from that base and depending on the problem, some strategies or others can be carried out. Some examples are setting limits, setting rules about something in particular, giving yourself more space, and going to therapy.

Main types of communication

Regarding the issue of communication, it is good that we always keep it in mind and evaluate how our type of communication is. There are three types of communication: passive, assertive and aggressive. We do not always express ourselves in the same way, since it depends on the situation in which we find ourselves and the person with whom we are, but we always tend in general terms to one of those types of communication. The ideal is to reach the intermediate point between passive and aggressive communication, that is, to be assertive.

If we tend not to express ourselves, perhaps because we are embarrassed to tell another person for fear of their response, we find ourselves in a profile of passive communication and the consequence is that we allow what causes us discomfort to continue happening, since we are allowing happen. On the other hand, if we do not allow the other person to express themselves or do not take their vision into account, we tend to have an aggressive communication profile.

Therefore, assertive communication is absolutely necessary, expressing how we feel and what we need and always respecting the vision of the other. In this way we can continue to communicate properly and gain confidence in ourselves.

Is social support a protective factor in mental health?

Undoubtedly, real and perceived social support is a factor that affects our mental health in a positive way, that is, it acts as a protector. Our selfconcept it is also made up of the feedback we receive from our environment, in this way we regulate what we believe about ourselves (vision subjective) with the vision that does not provide the environment (a more objective vision if it comes from an acceptable number of people in our environment nearby).

When we do not have people around us who listen to us, understand us or are by our side, supporting us in different ways, it is possible that in the face of adversities that we may encounter at some stage of our lives, we suffer of depressive and anxious symptoms to a greater extent than if we had had social support.

To end...

If you identify with the aspects discussed and would like to work on improving your communication style and your social skills, the psychologists at PsychoAlmería We can help you both online and in person.