This paper analyzes factors affecting the internal structure of affective relationships in triads formed by adolescent male drinkers and abstainers. It is shown that the likelihood of a given sociometric relation can be predicted from knowledge of other relational bonds in the triad and from the degree of similarity with regard to alcohol use. The relations between two individuals are affected importantly by their own behaviors and also by their affective ties and behavioral similarities to others in the system. It is suggested that balance theory may be extended to explain the strength of balance forces within one system as a function of imbalance in another. With regard to objects of generalized importance and social relevance, pressures toward balance are hypothesized to increase in strength to the extent that one or more actors experience imbalance in other relational sets. Consistent with this hypothesis is the observation that lack of parental support is associated with closer ties between an individual's friends.