A lot of the times during group socializing (group of 3 or more) I will focus on the person I know the best in order to best in order to get a sense of the mood of the conversation, or how I should react/respond to social cues based on said person's reactions/responses. It gives me non-verbal information I can't pick up on my own. And it works, because when I don't know anyone in the social group, I don't feel as comfortable, and my interactions will look/feel more forced or inaccurate. It's almost like having a pair of social eye glasses. Can anyone relate?