title: "It's Complicated"--Sex Differences in Perceptions of Cross-Sex Friendships.
abstract: Surprisingly, little is known about how a person's sex relates to beliefs about cross-sex friendships. In this study, participants completed a survey in which they provided separate estimates for the percentage of cross-sex friendships that contained secret "female-on-male" and "male-on female" sexual interest, indicated their optimism in the idea that males and females could be "just friends," and reported their comfort with their partner forming a cross-sex friendship. Males were just as optimistic as females about the possibility and indicated similar levels of discomfort in response to imagining their partner entering into a cross-sex friendship. Furthermore, males did not provide higher estimates of sexual interest in cross-sex friendships compared to females. Instead, a more nuanced pattern emerged. Males (vs. females) provided higher estimates of male-to-female sexual interest, but females (vs. males) provided higher estimates of female-to-male sexual interest.
authors.affiliation: a University of Alabama.
authors.forename: William
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Hart
authors.affiliation: a University of Alabama.
authors.forename: John
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Adams
authors.affiliation: a University of Alabama.
authors.forename: Alexa
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Tullett
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D005260:Female; D033062:Friends / Q000523:psychology*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D012727:Sex Characteristics; D012725:Sexual Behavior / Q000523:psychology*; D012919:Social Behavior; D012938:Social Perception; D055815:Young Adult
keywords: cross-sex friends; friendship; judgment and decision-making; social cognition