Below is an image of the levels of Friendship Pyramid that I created from doing research on the topic of friendship. Some of the ideas were adapted from Waiting and Dating by Dr. Myles Munroe. In the image, there are five stages of friendship development, which are: Stranger, Acquaintance, Casual Friend, Close Friend, and Intimate Friend. I will provide an explanation of the different stages of progression of a friendship.
Strangers (I Don't Know You):
The Stranger stage of the friendship-development process is defined by the lack of awareness of another's existence. It is the lowest stage and also the most important. The birth and progression of a friendship is dependent upon the first impression a person makes on another. If it is a bad impression, then chances are it will not develop. If it is a good impression, then the chances are it will develop. A good impression will lead to continued interaction, which opens the doors to the next stage in the process.
Acquaintance (I Know of You):
The Acquaintance stage continues from the Stranger stage, and it is defined by occasional interactions that you experience with a person. It is important to note that this is the stage where an "Associate" falls as well. An associate is defined as a partner or colleague in business or at work. So, an associate is basically like your coworker or a fraternity member. With an acquaintance, you know of each other because of the occasional high-and-bye situations that you both encounter with each other. Both of you have very general knowledge about each other such as knowing each other's name, major, who you hang out with, or where you work. However, this is about as far as it goes in with this stage. Overall, you both know each other in the social and business aspect of each other's life, but do not know each other personally. It is only once both people have made a decision to acknowledge the other as worthy of getting to know the next personally that the friendship can advance to the next stage.
Casual Friend (I Know You):
The Casual Friend is the stage where most people make it to. It is the stage where a person can actually say that they know a person. During this stage, people meet more frequently than acquaintances, more than likely, because the interactions are planned. The bonding factor in this stage revolves around the friends' common interests and activities. Additionally, in this stage, people are personally invested in each other; they are aware of each other's achievements and they give praise and support. However, they are not emotionally invested in each other. This is normally the stage where people begin to see each other with their mask off—no pun intended; it is an introduction into who the person really is. Sadly, most people never make it past this stage for a number of reasons, but sometimes it's because one person cannot handle the other's undesirable qualities. Also, because the foundation from which the friendship was built was not a healthy one. However, if a person proves themselves worthy, then they can level up.
