It can be very comforting to know, as James Taylor sings, that you've got a friend. It's especially true at the office, because if you have at least three close friends at work you're 46 percent more likely to be extremely satisfied with your job.

This is one finding from The Gallup Organization based on interviews with more than 5 million people and research compiled by Tom Rath, author of "Vital Friends."

When you've got a "best friend" at work, you are seven times more likely to be engaged in your job, meaning you are eager to work with passion and creativity.

You also have fewer accidents, are more engaged with customers and more likely to be innovative and share ideas, according to the research.

Friends, scientists have found, are catalysts for high points in any given day, says Rath. The dreaded commute to work is tolerable and the most tedious work activity is enjoyable with the presence of a friend.

But problems can arise with workplace friendships. They can become counterproductive when there are "bellyache buddies" based on a mutual hatred for their employer. A tight-knit social group can alienate workers who aren't part of the group. "And the closer two people get in the workplace, the more potential fallout if things go awry," Rath points out.

The upside of having close friends at work seems to outweigh the potential disadvantages.

Even so, not all businesses are keen on so much fraternizing at work.

Nearly one-third of the 80,000 managers and leaders interviewed felt that "familiarity breeds contempt."

Some companies even have formal policies prohibiting managers and employees from having friendships beyond the workplace.

Even if not so openly discouraged, most companies don't encourage friendships, says Rath. So it's not surprising that the research found that only 30 percent of employees say they have a best friend at work.

If, though, you do want to promote friendships in your workplace, you should look for ways to help people congregate.

Such locales like dining and break areas encourage the "water cooler effect," helping create more conversations and according to the research, develop workplaces with twice as many people with best friends at work.

Earlier research showed another benefit to having a close friend at work: a more favorable perception about their pay.

The study suggests that "close friendships at work could provide a form of intangible compensation for employees."

Some people tell me they have no interest in being friends with co-workers. They view them like they do family members, saying, "I didn't choose them, but I have to live with them."

Even more remote to them is the idea of being friends with their boss.

The Gallup research found that bosses were dead last at the bottom of the "people we enjoy being with" list. Interacting with the boss was rated, on average, as "being less enjoyable than cleaning the house."

But people who see their bosses as friends — or at least someone who seems to care about them as a person — say they are more likely to stay with their company, have more engaged customers and are more productive.

OK, so your boss is not ever going to be your friend. But it can't hurt to look around at others you work with and consider the benefits of making a new best friend — or two or three.

Among those surveyed who had at least three very close friends at work, they were not only more likely to feel better about their work, they were more likely to be satisfied with their life — 88 percent more likely, to be specific.

Reach Andrea Kay at andrea@andreakay.com.