EXPLORING SEX, GENDER, AND CLOSE INTERPERSONAL FRIENDSHIP

Abstract

Friendship is a commonly occurring relationship associated with positive physical and psychological outcomes. However, it is relatively understudied in communication research. Two key parts of identity that have implications for relational behavior are sex and gender, for which cultural understandings have evolved in recent decades. Using evolutionary psychology and social learning theory, the present study investigated how sex, gender role orientation, and sex composition each influence various elements of communication in close friendship (i.e., intimacy, self-disclosure, instrumentality, closeness, relationship satisfaction, and perceived). A total of 406 undergraduate college students responded to a self-report survey regarding their tendencies toward masculinity and femininity and the nature of their closest same- or mixed-sex friendship. More sex similarities than differences arose for communication elements, the onlydifferences being women’s greater intimacy and self-disclosure. Femininity and masculinity were both positively associated with almost all of the examined friendship behaviors; only masculinity displayed no correlation with closeness. Friendship communication varied by sex composition of the dyad, with same-sex pairs—and especially female-female pairs—displaying the relevant behaviors to the greatest extent. Results were interpreted in the context of cultural standards for sex- and gender-based behavior, with the intent of effectively updating the literature on sex, gender, and friendship.