Nate Riggs: Social Business Strategies; communication, social web strategies, & passion in Columbus, Ohio.

I think that humans are inherently pack animals.

In 1958, scholar and theorist William Schutz introduced his ideas on interpersonal relations in through his theory on Fundamental Interpersonal Relations Orientation (FIRO).  Citing the Wikipedia article linked above:

This theory mainly explains the interpersonal underworld of a small group. The Theory is based on the belief that when people get together in a group, there are three main interpersonal needs they are looking to obtain – affection/openness, control and inclusion…These categories measure how much interaction a person wants in the areas of socializing, leadership and responsibilities, and more intimate personal relations.

You can read more in FRIO when you have time.  Schultz designed an entire measurement model around his concept, which is intriguing at the very least.

Social Web Application
The concepts behind FRIO may be a key driver behind the exponential growth that Twitter has seen over the course of this year.  What I mean is that, if your sitting in cube city in front of a screen, chances are that your time to socialize and communicate is constrained by your environment.  In organizational communication, social conversations during the work day have traditionally been called “conversations at the water cooler” by academia.  These conversations are critical elements in the development and maintenance of organizational culture, but until the emergence of social web, this dialog has typically be held captive within walls of the organization.

Fast forward to present day.  The boundaries of water cooler are changing and with it, the constructs of organizational culture.

The web now enables us to find inclusion, affection and control within our circles of friends on social networks while we work away at our day jobs.  Tools like Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn and the thousands of niche-focused social networks take Schultz’s ideas to a new level, enabling users to fulfill basic interpersonal human needs electronically and in real time.  As a result, social cliques (or organically-formed mini organizations of people) begin to take form.

Who makes up your social clique?  Who are the people that you know you can count on to help you spread amplify your voice on the social web and why do they choose to help you?  More importantly, what are you doing to help them?