Karen S. Rook
University of California, Irvine

A paradox exists in research that seeks to understand how our relationships
with friends, family members, and others influence our health and well-
being. On the one hand, it is abundantly clear that most people are strongly
motivated to form close relationships ( Baumeister & Leary, 1995) and that
they care deeply about the quality of their relationships. Moreover, per-
sonal relationships appear to represent a critically important source of
psychological well-being. For example, when Klinger ( 1977) asked people
to indicate what gave their lives the greatest sense of meaning, most
responded with a reference to their personal relationships; few cited work
or other life domains as a centrally important source of meaning. Research
on the perceived quality of life confirms that the caliber of people's
personal relationships is a more powerful predictor of their happiness and
life satisfaction than is the caliber of their lives in most other domains
( Argyle, 1987; Campbell, Converse, & Rodgers, 1976). An extensive body

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