How Friendships Change in Adulthood (The Atlantic)
Friendships are unique relationships because unlike family relationships, we choose to enter into them. And unlike other voluntary bonds, like marriages and romantic relationships, they lack a formal structure. You wouldn’t go months without speaking to or seeing your significant other (hopefully), but you might go that long without contacting a friend.
Still, surveys show how important people’s friends are to their happiness. And though friendships tend to change as people age, there is some consistency in what people want from them.