Relationships Start With Small Talk

Family and marriage are two important facets of culture in Bountiful, Utah, and a fundamental part of building and maintaining these relationships is small talk. Psychcentral explains that “the comfort of talking about or hearing about anything from sports to cooking, is increasingly seen as a vehicle of success … because it lowers social anxiety and makes interpersonal risk taking more likely.” 

However, over time many marriages lose focus on the importance of small talk as life picks up in pace and the focus of the relationship shifts from the couple to their children. Over time, a decrease in small talk correlates to a drop in intimacy and may lead couples to seek marriage counseling. 

Small Talk Builds Intimacy

Even in family-oriented and marriage-focused communities like Bountiful, couples frequently need to be reminded of the importance of small talk. Psychologist Samantha Rodman expands on the effects of small talk on intimacy: “Self-disclosure leads to increased intimacy…Self-disclosure can be about little things or big things, but it usually relates to either the past or the future.” 

Simply put, couples that engage in meaningful small talk on a consistent basis often share a more intimate bond. Conversely, marriages in which small talk does not play a large role eventually experience larger communication breakdowns. In these cases marriage counseling can be used to reinforce the importance of small talk as an essential part of building a romantic bond. 

Small Talk can be a Bridge over Troubled Water

During periods of conflict and disagreement, or in an effort to mend feelings, small talk can help bring a couple back to a place of shared interest and respect. A common facet of marriage counseling teaches couples how to bridge communication gaps by sharing intimate details in conversation. For couples struggling with small talk or intimacy, even in family-oriented areas like Bountiful, it may prove beneficial to seek marriage counseling to get the conversation and the relationship back on track. 

Nicole Donaldson is a relationship writer for Fusion 360, an SEO and content marketing agency. Information provided by Swinton Counseling. Follow on Twitter.