Theories and why I love them!

I have always been a firm believer that knowledge is power. This is especially true in the case of social theories. Let me explain: we all do things without conscious deliberation- especially the way we react to something emotional. This is why (in my opinion) understanding theories like the exchange theory, symbolic interaction theory, family systems theory, etc.  is so important. To further illustrate I'll give an example of me and learning about the exchange theory. When I do my dishes I sometimes will wash my roommates dishes if they are in the sink. Well, there are times when they don't thank me for it and this bothers me because "after all I'm puting in just for the sake of being nice they can at least give the curtousy of a thank you," but  after learning about the exchange theory I really had to question my motives. Was I really washing the dishes just for the sake of being nice, or did I want something from it? I decided I wanted  to do their dishes just for the sake of being nice so I change my attitude. The point I'm trying (hopefully siccessfully) to make is that learning about theories can change behaviors, but even more powerfully they can change motives and attitudes as well.