Shared enemies as prosocial tool: how to infer positive relationships from negative relationships in social networks

While negative relationships can weaken social experiences, shared negative interactions can serve as prosocial tools for inferring positive relationships. Research shows that humans adjust their strategies based on relationship quantity and group structure, enabling them to build networks from incomplete social knowledge.

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Publication Details

Journal
BMC Psychology
Published
2026-02-13
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1186/s40359-026-04098-0
Primary Topic
Death Anxiety and Social Exclusion
Type
article
Field-Weighted Citation Impact
0.00
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article

Shared enemies as prosocial tool: how to infer positive relationships from negative relationships in social networks

Qiang Zhou, Leping Wang, Yating Chen
BMC Psychology
Death Anxiety and Social Exclusion
article

Shared enemies as prosocial tool: how to infer positive relationships from negative relationships in social networks

Qiang Zhou, Leping Wang, Yating Chen
article en

Abstract

While negative relationships can weaken social experiences, shared negative interactions can serve as prosocial tools for inferring positive relationships. Research shows that humans adjust their strategies based on relationship quantity and group structure, enabling them to build networks from incomplete social knowledge.

BMC PsychologyVol. 14(1)
Ningbo University (CN), Wenzhou Medical University (CN), First Affiliated Hospital of Wenzhou Medical University (CN)
Reduced inequalities
Openalex Percentile: Top 64%
Death Anxiety and Social Exclusion
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Shared enemies as prosocial tool: how to infer positive relationships from negative relationships in social networks — Qiang Zhou, Leping Wang, et al. · BMC Psychology (2026) | TGRS Research Map | TGRS