This book is about friendships in public settings today. Wilkinson
examines friendships in the public settings of neighbourhoods, civil
society and at work. Identifying the unique relevance which public
friendships have to contemporary social problems, the chapters cover a
range of topics, including work-life balance, women's 'double burden'
and their leisure deficit, and contemporary neighbouring initiatives.
Wilkinson shows how 'friendship time' at work provides solutions to new
social problems including privacy: with the modern workplace being
hyper-public and emphasizing visibility, monitoring and 24/7
availability, friendship's combination of voluntarism and trust enable a
private refuge even in an open-plan office. The book also explores the
way in which friendships in public settings like work and neighbourhood
provide community to those in society who are more likely to be excluded
from private familial intimacy.
The Public Life of Friendship will be of interest to students and
scholars across a range of social science disciplines with an interest
in friendship and the sociology of personal life.