Sociology of friendship: A research on changing friendship relations (The case of Mardin)

The study aims to understand and explain friendship relationships and changes in friendship relations through relational reasons. Friendship is a selected type of interpersonal relationship. People choose their friends with their own will, and they carry out the relationships / actions that they experience with their own will, too. On the other hand, changes in friendship relations can be based on some reasons such as modernization, individualization and technology. The study was carried out by adopting the phenomenological approach of the qualitative research method. In-depth interviews were conducted with the semi-structured interview form with 40 people selected according to maximum variation sampling technique. The socio-demographic and socio-economic characteristics of the interviewers were classified and their experiences related to the establishment, maintenance and termination of friendships were put forward. Through these experiences, economic, political, religious, social and psychological dimensions of friendship were discussed. As a result of the interviews, it was concluded that there was a change and transformation in friendship relations. It was understood that modernization, individualization and technological developments affected friendship relations, friendship changed compared to the past, and change was toward selfishness and superficiality instead of sincerity and sacrifice.