Human beings are social animals. One of the defining features that separate humanity from plants and animals are the social self. Humans are dependent on relationships with others to survive and reproduce. These relationships are also a fundamental aspect of one's social life. The idea of person perception forms first impressions of others, while interpersonal attraction is the force that decides whether or not relationships are formed or not. Interpersonal attraction is simply an attraction between individuals that can lead to liking, friendship or love. Research suggests that there are multiple factors that influence interpersonal attraction, including propinquity, similarity, exposure, physical attractiveness, reciprocal liking, and reinforcement.
             One of the simplest factors in determining interpersonal attraction is propinquity or proximity. According to Mady Segal (1974), a sociology professor at the University of Michigan, the propinquity effect can be defined as, "the smaller the physical and functional distance between two people, the more likely they are to be attracted to each other" (p. 654). People are more likely to form relationships with others who are in proximity, than to those further away. For example, students are more likely to form friendships with those sitting near them, as opposed to those sitting on the opposite side of the classroom. Abundant support for the propinquity effect has been found through research.
             One of the first studies to test the propinquity effect was conducted by Festinger et al. in 1950. The study focused on relationship formation among residents of an apartment complex who were said to be strangers when they moved in. The researchers asked the residents to list three of their friends from the complex, and just as the propinquity effect predicted, 65% of the friends lived in the same building. Furthermore, 41% of the residents said that their close friends were their next-door ...