title: Qualitative interviews with adolescents about "friends-with-benefits" relationships.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To describe the thoughts, reflections, and experiences of friends-with-benefits relationships among a group of Swedish adolescents.
  
  
  METHODS
  A qualitative study with an explorative and descriptive design. Eight adolescents, aged 16-18, were interviewed.
  
  
  METHODS
  Individual in-depth interviews were undertaken. Data were analyzed using latent content analysis.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The informants involved themselves in Friends-with-benefits (FWB) relationships to find physical and psychological intimacy without any expectations or demands. FWB relationships were perceived to have more advantages when the partner was a close friend with whom an informant felt comfortable. There was ambivalence about the legitimacy of romantic feelings in an FWB relationship, although it was quite common. Sexual concurrency was common and often accepted. Sexual risk-taking behavior involving the use of alcohol and a lack of contraception was considered common in FWB relationships. Informants requested more education and support as regards their sexual behavior.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  FWB relationships were often initiated to find physical and psychological intimacy with no expectations or demands. Advantages such as sexual concurrency and no demands were central. A deeper understanding of how adolescents think and reason about sexuality and relationships can make a difference when working to improve young people's sexual and reproductive health.
authors.affiliation: School of Health, Care and Social Welfare, Mälardalen University, Västerås, Sweden.
authors.forename: Kerstin
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Erlandsson
authors.forename: Cecilia
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Jinghede Nordvall
authors.forename: Anna
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Ohman
authors.forename: Elisabet
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Häggström-Nordin
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D003267:Contraception / Q000523:psychology; D004644:Emotions; D005260:Female; D033062:Friends / Q000523:psychology*; D006801:Humans; D007407:Interviews as Topic; D008297:Male; D012309:Risk-Taking; D012725:Sexual Behavior / Q000523:psychology*; D012747:Sexual Partners / Q000523:psychology; D019529:Sexuality; D013548:Sweden