Listening and the pursuit of communal relationships

Abstract

Two motivations linked to developing and maintaining communal relationships include caring for others' welfare and striving to be viewed as a desirable communal relationship partner. We review evidence suggesting that both motivations promote high-quality listening. Furthermore, high-quality listening signals listeners' prosocial motivation and enhances the perceived relational value of both listeners and speakers. Thus, high-quality listening likely functions as an effective strategy in the formation and maintenance of communal relationships. This review suggests several directions for future research, including longitudinal research on the role of listening in relationship development, accuracy and bias in detecting and interpreting listening, the influence of conversation topic on listening, the role of people's beliefs about the usefulness of listening, and individual and relationship factors that determine people's motivations for listening.

Keywords: Communal relationships; Interpersonal goals; Listening; Prosocial motivation; Trust.