PS287 Lecture Notes - Lecture 15: Role Conflict, Gender Role, Homophily
Document Summary
Friendship with someone of the other sex; not romantic, sexual, or familial. Less common than same-sex: most children have/had a cross-sex friend, number of cross-sex friends decreases after early-mid adulthood. Changing social roles for men and women make cross-sex friendships more possible today. Less intimate for women: men gain more emotional support and intimacy from cross-sex friendships. In sum, cross-sex friendships offer: more emotional support for men. Perspective of other sex for both girls and boys, men and women. Equality: existing unequal status of men and women. Audience: public"s perception: opportunity: difficult to establish friendship due to segregation. Homophily: tendency to form friendships with persons of same ethnic/racial group. School, neighborhood, work often informally segregated: outgroup homogeneity effect: perceive people of other races as more similar to one another and thus more different than self. Friendships especially important for lgbt when less family support: number and quality of friendships similar for heterosexuals and homosexuals.