This study used a social exchange framework to examine the features of non-romantic other-sex (OS) friendships compared with same-sex (SS) friendships and romantic relationships. High school seniors (N = 141) completed open-ended interviews about the benefits and costs of having OS friendships, SS friendships, and romantic relationships in…

This study was designed to describe the conflict resolution practices used in Mexican American adolescents' friendships, to explore the role of cultural orientations and values and gender-typed personality qualities in conflict resolution use, and to assess the connections between conflict resolution and friendship quality. Participants were 246…

Analysis of survey data from 1013 undergraduates at a large southeastern university revealed that over half (51%) reported experience in a "friends with benefits" relationship. In comparing the background characteristics of participants with nonpartipants in a FWBR, ten statistically significant findings emerged. Findings included that…

The present study provides a comparative analysis of sexual-minority and heterosexual emerging adult women's experiences seeking support for sexual issues from parents and friends. Participants included 229 college women (88 sexual-minority women; 141 heterosexual women), ranging from 18 to 25 years of age, who provided written responses to an…

Previous research has examined gender and grade differences in the emotional closeness of adolescents' same- and cross-sex friendships. However, findings from these studies have been inconsistent because they have failed to (1) differentiate between cross-sex friendships and romantic relationships and (2) compare same- and cross-sex friendships.…

Presents previously unpublished paper written by Abraham Maslow in April 1968 in which Maslow speculates on the issue that society had become pathologically individualistic and needed to develop better means of facilitating close relationships among people. (Author/ABL)

The development of intimate same- and other-sex friendships in Arab children and adolescents in Israel was investigated in relation to their perceived parenting styles. It was hypothesized that girls would show higher levels of intimacy than boys, and that cross-sex intimacy in both groups would increase with age, whereas same-sex intimate…

Concurrent and longitudinal relations between the amount of romantic experience and psychosocial adjustment were examined in a 1-year study of a community based sample of 200 tenth graders. Adolescents, parents, and friends completed measures of psychosocial adjustment. The amount of romantic experience was associated with higher reports of social…

Using data from the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth 1997 (N = 4,190), this study examined adolescents' reports of primary confidants. Results showed that nearly 30% of adolescents aged 16-18 nominated mothers as primary confidants, 25% nominated romantic partners, and 20% nominated friends. Nominating romantic partners or friends was related…

The value and importance of human intimacy is examined as a complex combination of passion, commitment, friendship, and love. Models of healthy and unhealthy conflict in relationships are offered as well as suggestions for moving from unhealthy expressions of conflict to healthy ones.

This study examines the responses of informal helpers to adolescents who disclose dating violence or upsetting but non-violent experiences in their romantic relationships. Based on a survey of 224 Midwestern high school students, the study found that youths were more likely to disclose problems to friends rather than others. A factor analysis of…

One-child households have doubled over the last two decades making it one of the fastest growing family units in America. The author aids families in understanding the common traits of many adult "onlies"--like shyness, perfection, and intolerance--so that they can better prepare for potential outcomes. He also celebrates the positive qualities of…

Drawing on a larger ethnographic study of four high school young men, this paper foregrounds high school male-male friendships as a context for examining how heterosexism and homophobia operate to limit and delimit the ways masculinities are constructed. I begin this article by first highlighting an inconsistency between recent school initiatives…

One-hundred-and-seventy undergraduates at a large southeastern university completed a confidential anonymous 23 item questionnaire designed to assess the prevalence, attitudes, and sex differences of involvement in a "friends with benefits" (FWB) relationship (non romantic friends who also have a sexual relationship). Almost sixty percent of both…

Many studies investigating gender differences in friendships have assumed that friendships were same-sex relationships. Only a few studies have focused on friendships between the sexes and most of these have used college student samples. This study examined friendships of 156 professional men and women using a self-report questionnaire consisting…