ABSTRACT
This chapter is concerned with what the two individual participants in a relationship do together. This is a logical starting point because the initial categorisation of relationships that we make usually refers primarily to what the participants do either together, or in fulfilment of their joint responsibilities. “Teacher–pupil” or “doctor–patient” relationship describes the general nature of the activities of the individuals concerned. Even terms like “mother–child” or “husband–wife” relationship, which may imply the biological characteristics of the participants or institutional aspects of the relationship, still refer primarily to what they do together or cooperatively. We do not necessarily regard a child that has been adopted as having a mother–child relationship with his natural mother, and we speak of couples as “married only in name”. That we usually classify relationships in this way does not imply that the divisions are fundamental. Certainly the use of such labels may differ between cultures, and in some societies certain relationships may be invested with a significance which is lacking in others (e.g. mother’s brother). But it is often convenient to categorise relationships according to their everyday labels, and these do in fact provide a convenient framework for comparing and contrasting relationships (Auhagen & von Salisch, 1996).
