The Psychology of Residential and Relational Mobilities

Abstract Social and behavioral scientists have delineated a diverse array of cultural variation in thinking, feeling, and behavior. This chapter summarizes an effort to clarify the sources of cultural variation from a socioecological perspective, focusing on two key factors: residential mobility and relational mobility. Residential mobility refers to the frequency with which people change their residence, whereas relational mobility refers to the degree to which different environments afford individuals with opportunities to form new relationships and end existing ones. A review of the literature on the associations between residential mobility, relational mobility, and psychological constructs such as well-being, interpersonal relationships, and group identity is presented. Although there are many similarities between residential and relational mobility, the two are best considered as related but distinct. Finally, important future directions of research on residential and relational mobilities are summarized.