Just a Friend or Something More: Understanding the Complexity of Opposite-Sex Friendships

Abstract

Friendship is a social relationship that is established between individuals of the same or opposite sex. Opposite-sex friendships in adults certainly reap complexity, both from within the person who makes the friendship and from others. This study aims to understand the complexity of opposite-sex friendships in adults through a literature review of research articles in Scopus-indexed journals on opposite-sex friendships. The results show that the decision to make opposite-sex friendships is influenced by various factors, such as physical attractiveness, personal values, cultural norms, hormonal influences, homophobia, and relationship status. Additionally, there is a tendency to perceive these friendships as romantic relationships. In many cases, this assumption is true because opposite-sex friendships can also lead to more intimate relationships such as friendships with benefits or romantic relationships. Opposite-sex friendships with people who already have partners can also result in jealousy, infidelity, and even breakups. In addition, different perspectives of men and women regarding opposite-sex friendships are discussed, including those related to physical contact in these friendships. In summary, friendships between men and women are complicated. They are affected by many factors and may be seen differently by men and women.