title: Public displays of affection among Asian and Latino heterosexual couples.
abstract: The present study used naturalistic observation to investigate whether public touching behavior differs as a function of the interactants' race or ethnicity. Heterosexual dyads (22 Asian, 22 Latino; average age = 24 years) were observed while walking through the campus of a large western university. Some support was found for the notion that interactants from "contact" cultures, e.g., Latin America, are more contact-prone than those from "noncontact" cultures, e.g., Asia. Specifically, Latino male-female dyads were more likely to embrace while walking in public than Asian male-female dyads.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology, California State University-Los Angeles 90032-8227, USA. pregan@calstatela.edu
authors.forename: P C
authors.initials: PC
authors.lastname: Regan
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Jerry
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Narvaez
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Johnson
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D001213:Asian / Q000523:psychology*; D003431:Cross-Cultural Comparison; D005260:Female; D006630:Hispanic or Latino / Q000523:psychology*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D012725:Sexual Behavior; D012931:Social Environment; D012945:Social Values; D013334:Students / Q000523:psychology*; D014110:Touch