Psychological Well-Being and Brokerage in Friendship Networks of Young Swedes
Mollenhorst, Gerald ; Edling, Christofer LU
and Rydgren, Jens
(2015)
In Social Indicators Research
123(3).
p.897-917
- Abstract
- All ethnic groups have norms and values according to which one is expected to behave. Immigrants in particular have personal networks that simultaneously consist of co-ethnics and friends of a different ethnic background. As a consequence, they may be accustomed to the behavior, norms, and values of their own ethnic group, and also be expected to behave according to those of another ethnic group. This may either lead to ego-gratification and the strengthening and enrichment of their personality, or to feelings of stress and non-acceptance if they cannot behave fully in accordance with the expectations of their friends. This study addresses the association between interethnic open triads in networks (i.e., brokerage) and individual... (More)
- All ethnic groups have norms and values according to which one is expected to behave. Immigrants in particular have personal networks that simultaneously consist of co-ethnics and friends of a different ethnic background. As a consequence, they may be accustomed to the behavior, norms, and values of their own ethnic group, and also be expected to behave according to those of another ethnic group. This may either lead to ego-gratification and the strengthening and enrichment of their personality, or to feelings of stress and non-acceptance if they cannot behave fully in accordance with the expectations of their friends. This study addresses the association between interethnic open triads in networks (i.e., brokerage) and individual psychological well-being. That is, we examine whether having intra-ethnic and interethnic relationships with friends who are not also friends with each other, is either positively or negatively associated with psychological well-being. Using (network) data from a large sample (N = 2,942; age = 19) of native Swedes and first- and second-generation immigrants from former Yugoslavia and Iran (all born in 1990 and currently living in Sweden), we show that interethnic brokerage is negatively associated with psychological well-being, which implies that the different norms, values and corresponding behaviors that prevail in different ethnic groups to which the ethnic broker is connected may result in internal and external conflicts, to feelings that one is not fully accepted by any of these groups, and ultimately to a lower level of psychological well-being. (Less)
Please use this url to cite or link to this publication:
https://lup.lub.lu.se/record/4678868
- author
- Mollenhorst, Gerald
; Edling, Christofer
LU
and Rydgren, Jens
- organization
- publishing date
- 2015
- type
- Contribution to journal
- publication status
- published
- subject
- keywords
- interethnic relationships, brokerage, psychological well-being, triads, friendships, personal networks, sociology, sociologi
- in
- Social Indicators Research
- volume
- 123
- issue
- 3
- pages
- 897 - 917
- publisher
- Springer
- external identifiers
-
- wos:000360078700014
- scopus:84939653028
- ISSN
- 0303-8300
- DOI
- 10.1007/s11205-014-0766-8
- language
- English
- LU publication?
- yes
- additional info
- First published Online, 20 September 2014
- id
- 71873753-2a44-4480-afc4-6672dfac1b1f (old id 4678868)
- alternative location
- http://link.springer.com/article/10.1007%2Fs11205-014-0766-8
- date added to LUP
- 2016-04-01 10:05:56
- date last changed
- 2022-01-25 19:40:09
@article{71873753-2a44-4480-afc4-6672dfac1b1f,
abstract = {{All ethnic groups have norms and values according to which one is expected to behave. Immigrants in particular have personal networks that simultaneously consist of co-ethnics and friends of a different ethnic background. As a consequence, they may be accustomed to the behavior, norms, and values of their own ethnic group, and also be expected to behave according to those of another ethnic group. This may either lead to ego-gratification and the strengthening and enrichment of their personality, or to feelings of stress and non-acceptance if they cannot behave fully in accordance with the expectations of their friends. This study addresses the association between interethnic open triads in networks (i.e., brokerage) and individual psychological well-being. That is, we examine whether having intra-ethnic and interethnic relationships with friends who are not also friends with each other, is either positively or negatively associated with psychological well-being. Using (network) data from a large sample (N = 2,942; age = 19) of native Swedes and first- and second-generation immigrants from former Yugoslavia and Iran (all born in 1990 and currently living in Sweden), we show that interethnic brokerage is negatively associated with psychological well-being, which implies that the different norms, values and corresponding behaviors that prevail in different ethnic groups to which the ethnic broker is connected may result in internal and external conflicts, to feelings that one is not fully accepted by any of these groups, and ultimately to a lower level of psychological well-being.}},
author = {{Mollenhorst, Gerald and Edling, Christofer and Rydgren, Jens}},
issn = {{0303-8300}},
keywords = {{interethnic relationships; brokerage; psychological well-being; triads; friendships; personal networks; sociology; sociologi}},
language = {{eng}},
number = {{3}},
pages = {{897--917}},
publisher = {{Springer}},
series = {{Social Indicators Research}},
title = {{Psychological Well-Being and Brokerage in Friendship Networks of Young Swedes}},
url = {{http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s11205-014-0766-8}},
doi = {{10.1007/s11205-014-0766-8}},
volume = {{123}},
year = {{2015}},
}