Topic > The concept of social exchange theory

"The adjustment made by one individual influences the adjustments that others must make, which in turn require readjustment." — John Thibaut and Harold Kelley Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an original essay According to the textbook, the definition of Social Exchange Theory (SET) “is based on the idea that people think about their relationships in economic terms…People calculate the costs of being in a relationship and compare them with the rewards that come with being in that relationship.” The researchers associated with this theory are John Thibaut and Harold Kelley. The key concepts of social exchange theory are based on what could be seen as a kind of reward system for all parties involved in a relationship each person receives a real reward simply for having known another person or group of people, although in some cases this may be part of it Every human being will experience some form of social exchange in their life at one time or another Whether you're deciding in elementary school who to swap lunch with or choosing a new partnership for your emerging law firm, social exchange exists in even the smallest interactions and develops throughout our lives into larger, larger interactions important, if you will. The main concept of this theory is essentially that people look at costs versus rewards when it comes to forming or attempting to form a new or lasting relationship and the value of that relationship equals the rewards minus the costs. If there are more rewards in a relationship, then a person is much more likely to stay in that relationship than in a relationship with a lot of costs. People will engage in relationships where both parties are equally satisfied with each other's benefits. Just like monetary gain within the economy; when people meet, they exchange a certain level of currency or emotional baggage, if you will. This is not to say that every thriving relationship has only zero-cost rewards, but only that the rewards of the bond remain greater than the costs. Relationships are an independent process that requires work from both parties. Please note: this is just an example. Get a custom paper from our expert writers now. Get a Custom Essay The assumptions that social exchange theory makes about human nature include the following statements: Human beings seek rewards and avoid punishments. Human beings are rational beings. The standards that humans use to evaluate costs and rewards vary over time and from person to person. Works Cited: Satrapi, M. (2003). Persepolis: The Story of a Childhood. Pantheon.An, K. (2017). Representations of Iranian women in Persepolis. Journal of the Association for the Study of Australian Literature, 17(3), 1-12.Cooper, A. (2007). Comics and the postcolonial: Persepolis, national identity and graphic narrative. MFS Modern Fiction Studies, 53(4), 767-794.Crowder, T. (2012). Graphic novel and war fiction: the case of Persepolis. The Journal of Popular Culture, 45(4), 819-839.Goffman, E. (1959). Self-presentation in everyday life. Anchor Books.Hosseini, M. (2016). The nationalization of Iranian oil in political cartoons. Journal of Asian and African Studies, 51(5), 697-709.Nejad, A. N., & Hosseini, R. M. (2012). Marjane Satrapi's Persepolis and the plurality of resistance: representation of Iran before and after the Islamic Revolution. Journal of Language Teaching and Research, 3(1), 169-176.Shariq, S. (2014). Representation of the Iranian revolution in Persepolis., 44(6), 1166-1186.