ABSTRACT
This chapter examines cultural differences in relationship formation, structure and maintenance. Societies differ in type, number and permanence of the groups that people join, but people of all cultures naturally form groups. Network structure is important in determining the outcome of many important social and economic relationships. The concept of plexity is fairly closely connected to the concept of density, in the sense that communities with preferences for network density typically also score high in relationship plexity. Various factors are therefore responsible for determining network structures and need to be taken into consideration when discussing social links across societies and cultures. The assessment of the multidimensionality of human relationships is therefore paramount to the understanding of our actions during conflicts and disputes. Two key structural concepts that determine the impact and influence of social networks on our interactional and behavioural patterns are the notions of network density and plexity.
