Many friends are not necessarily happier than having few friends

Those who have many friends are usually outgoing and easily blend in with the environment around them. Meanwhile, introverts tend to have a few friends but very close friendships. They say that having lots of friends can make you happier than having just a few friends. Is that right? Come on, find out the answer in the following review!

Which is happier, having lots of friends or few friends?

You may think that having lots of friends is happier. Because, you have lots of friends to share stories, help each other, and so on.

According to one study, having close friends can determine how happy and successful teenagers are later in life. People who form strong friendships starting at age 15 tend to have a better life at age 25. Having close friends makes them feel more self-esteemed and reduces symptoms of depression.

Basically, good friendships are influenced by the personality of each person. Shigero Oishi from the University of Virginia and Selin Kesebir from the London Business School told LiveScience that having lots of friends doesn't always show positive results.

Experts suspect that this is determined by the social and economic conditions of each person. For example, high mobility makes a person more loyal and has many friends. But on the other hand, having lots of friends also consumes a lot of time, energy, and money.

Oishi and Sebir engaged around 247 participants, whose average age was 31 years, to make a list of initials of a best friend, one close friend, and one distant friend. Then, they were asked to divide 60 points into three different categories, namely time, effort, and money, for each friend.

As a result, participants with low mobility and income tended to be happier when they had few close friends than they had many friends. Because, a close and intimate friendship can help them get better and feel they have the full support of their close friends.

Meanwhile, having lots of friends usually costs you a lot when it comes to treating all your close friends. Not to mention if you need more time to visit your friends when you want to stay in touch.

What are the benefits of having fewer friends?

You may be afraid of being mistaken for a loner or just not hanging out if you have few friends. In fact, for those of you who have an introverted nature, it is certainly not easy to mingle with many unknown people.

In fact, having fewer friends also has an equally important benefit in your life. The benefits of having few friends are:

1. More efficient: You certainly don't need to spend a lot when you have to treat your friends for their birthdays or buy souvenirs when you go out of town.
2. There isn't much conflict: Of course, no kind of friendship is completely free from conflict. However, if you have fewer friends, you will likely have less conflict than if you had lots of friends. Problems also tend to be resolved more easily and quickly.
3. More familiar: Usually, the smaller circle of friends makes you more familiar with each other. You will find it easier to stay in touch with a smaller number of friends than with a larger circle of friends.

Try to consider the quality of friendships you have

Basically, making friends isn't all about how many friends you have. Rather than thinking about the ideal number of friends, what is more important is how you maintain the quality of each friendship itself.

It's useless if you have lots of friends but in fact there is no positive impact on your life. Better to have a limited number of friends but they continue to encourage you to be a better person, and vice versa.

However, having a few friends also means nothing if you still can't open up and grow. Especially if you are a person who likes to socialize, then your circle of friends will certainly be better if it continues to expand from day to day. So, choose friends who can support, accept, and want to fight with you.