Gender differences in the initiation and attribution of tactile intimacy

Abstract

Cultural norms may restrict the demonstration of intimacy between men, such that male adults are relatively unlikely (in comparison to females) to display affection in public by hugging or putting hands around one another's waists. Study 1 examined via a role playing technique how the gender composition of a dyad and types of friendship influence tactile greetings. Males displayed less physical intimacy with male friends than with female (platonic or dating) friends and less than females displayed with their same-sex friends. Study 2 examined subjects' perceptions of and attributions about reciprocal touch. Male-male behavior was rated as less normal as a function of the level of physical touch (going from no touch, hugging, to arms around the waist). The normalcy rating of opposite-sex pairs did not vary as a function of the touch manipulation, but female, same-sex pairs' behavior was rated as less normal in the arms around the waist than in either the no touch or hug conditions. In the male same-sex pairs, hugging was seen as more likely to reflect a sexual relationship than no touch, while arms around one another's waist was rated as even more likely to represent a sexual relationship. It was suggested that homophobia, the fear of appearing or being homosexual, may operate to inhibit physical intimacy between men.