Are weak ties only about information and opportunity?
In a 2016 study “The Relationship Between Group Identification and Satisfaction with Life in a Cross-Cultural Community Sample”, it shows that people who were members of groups like sports teams or religious communities enjoyed a greater sense of meaning and security, regardless of nationality or age, according to a study for which psychologists recruited respondents from Italy and Scotland. Additionally, the more groups someone belonged to, the better. In order to what mentioned here for a sense o belonging, weak ties can also bring easier and more relaxing conversations where you can get some social energy and empathy from acquaintances without engaging in different conversations. Moreover, one thing the article did not point out is that it is easier for someone to hide some part of themselves or what’s happening in life that they do not want to share with an acquaintance. This creates an opportunity to alleviate emotional burdens or even create a self that is not totally authentic but someone is hoping to become. Weak ties can also present different types of lives, way more than those you know from your strong ties, which can lead to realizations of more diverse ways of living life, tackling life problems, and understanding your pains.
This article provides a different angle of thinking of weak ties. In class, we talked about while strong ties are important for emotional support, weak ties can be helpful for finding new opportunities and information. For example, if you are looking for a new job, weak ties may be more likely to know about open positions than your close friends. However, this article challenges us to think: are only strong ties helpful to our emotional support? And are weak ties just about opportunities and information? It is a bit counterintuitive but as we explained above, building networks of casual acquaintances can increase enjoyment, knowledge, and a sense of belonging.
https://www.bbc.com/worklife/article/20200701-why-your-weak-tie-friendships-may-mean-more-than-you-think