Abstract
This study provides descriptive data that contrast patterns of friendship for men and women in Russia and the United States, based on a parallel survey conducted at comparable universities in the two countries. Both cultural and gender differences were observed. Russians reported fewer friends with whom they shared less personal information than did Americans, and women in both societies reported that their friendships are more conversation-focused and intimate than men’s. In addition, interactive effects of culture and gender were apparent in patterns of cross-gender friendships. Numerous explanations for these patterns—including differences in the social and political histories of the two countries and in the relative importance of gender role distinctions—are discussed.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Adams, G., & Plaut, V. (2003). The cultural grounding of personal relationships: Friendship in North American and West African worlds. Personal Relationships, 10, 333–348.
Allan, G. (1989). Friendship: Developing a sociological perspective. London: Harvester Wheatsheaf.
Altman, I., & Taylor, D. A. (1973). Social penetration: The development of interpersonal relationships. New York: Holt, Rinehart, & Winston.
Antonucci, T. C., & Akiyama, H. (1995). Convoys of social relations: Family and friendships within a life-span context. In R. Blieszner & V. H. Bedford (Eds.), Handbook of aging and the family (pp. 355–371). Westport, CT: Greenwood.
Aron, A., Aron, E., & Smollan, D. (1992). Inclusion of other in the self scale and the structure of interpersonal closeness. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 63, 596–612.
Bank, B. J. (1995). Friendships in Australia and the United States: From feminization to more heroic image. Gender and Society, 9, 79–98.
Bank, B. J., & Hansford, S. L. (2000). Gender and friendship: Why are men’s best same-sex friendships less intimate and supportive? Personal Relationships, 7, 63–78.
Baum, A., & Valins, S. (1979). Architectural mediation of residential density and control: Crowding and the regulation of social contact. In L. Berkowitz (Ed.), Advances in experimental social psychology (Vol. 12, pp. 131–175). New York: Academic Press.
Bell, S., & Coleman, S. (Eds.). (1999). The anthropology of friendship. Oxford: Berg.
Bleske, A., & Buss, D. (2000). Can men and women be just friends? Personal Relationships, 7, 131–151.
Burleson, B. R. (2003). The experience and effects of emotional support: What the study of cultural and gender differences can tell us about close relationships, emotion, and interpersonal communication. Personal Relationships, 10, 1–23.
Clark, M. S. (1981). Noncomparability of benefits given and received: A cue to the existence of friendship. Social Psychology Quarterly, 44, 375–381.
Clark, M. S., & Mills, J. (1993). The difference between communal and exchange relationships: What it is and is not. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 19, 684–691.
Crawford, M. (1977). What is a friend? New Society, 20, 116–117.
Dindia, K., & Allen, M. (1992). Sex differences in self-disclosure: A meta-analysis. Psychological Bulletin, 112, 106–124.
Duck, S., & Wright, P. H. (1993). Reexamining gender differences in same-gender friendships: A close look at two kinds of data. Sex Roles, 28, 709–727.
Fehr, B. (1996). Friendship processes. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.
Fehr, B. (2004). Intimacy expectations in same-sex friendships: A prototype interaction-pattern model. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 86, 265–284.
Fehr, B., & Perlman, D. (1985). The family as social network and support system. In L. L’Abate (Ed.), Handbook of family psychology and therapy (Vol. I, pp. 323–356). Homewood, IL: Dorsey.
Goodwin, R. (1995a). Personal relationships across cultures. The Psychologist, 8, 73–75.
Goodwin, R. (1995b). The privatization of the personal? I: Intimate disclosure in modern-day Russia. Journal of Social and Personal Relationships, 12, 121–131.
Goodwin, R. (1998). Personal relationships and social change: The “realpolitik” of cross-cultural research in transient cultures. Journal of Social and Personal Relationships, 15, 227–247.
Goodwin, R., Nizharadze, G., Luu, L. A. N., Kosa, E., & Emelyanova, T. (1999). Glasnost and the art of conversation: A multilevel analysis of intimate disclosure across three former soviet cultures. Journal of Cross-Cultural Psychology, 30, 72–90.
Inman, C. (1996). Friendships among men: Closeness in the doing. In J. T. Wood (Ed.), Gendered relationships (pp. 95–110). Mountain View, CA: Mayfield.
Johnson, F., & Aries, E. (1983). Conversational patterns among same-sex pairs of late-adolescent close friends. Journal of Genetic Psychology, 142, 225–238.
Komarovsky, M. (1964). Blue collar marriage. New York: Random House.
Larson, R. W., & Bradney, N. (1988). Precious moments with family members and friends. In R. M. Milardo (Ed.), Families and social networks (pp. 107–126). Newbury Park, CA: Sage.
Levant, R., Cuthbert, A., Richmond, K., Sellers, A., Matveev, A., et al. (2003). Masculinity ideology among Russian and U.S. young men and women and its relationships to unhealthy lifestyles habits among young Russian men. Psychology of Men and Masculinity, 4, 26–36.
Matsumoto, D., Takeuchi, S., Andayani, S., Kouznetsova, N., & Krupp, D. (1998). The contribution of individualism vs. collectivism to cross-national differences in display rules. Asian Journal of Social Psychology, 1, 147–165.
Moghaddam, F. M., Taylor, D. M., & Wright, S. C. (1993). Social psychology in cross-cultural perspective. New York: W.H. Freeman.
O’Meara, J. D. (1989). Cross-sex friendship: Four basic challenges of an ignored relationship. Sex Roles, 21, 525–543.
Reis, H. T. (1988). Gender effects in social participation: Intimacy, loneliness, and the conduct of social interaction. In R. Gilmour & S. Duck (Eds.), The emerging field of personal relationships (pp. 91–105). Hillsdale, NJ: Erlbaum.
Reis, H. T., Senchak, M., & Solomon, B. (1985). Sex differences in the intimacy of social interaction: Further examination of potential explanations. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 48, 1204–1217.
Richmond, Y. (1996). From nyet to da: Understanding the Russians. Yarmouth, ME: Intercultural Press.
Rubin, L. (1986). On men and friendship. Psychoanalytic Review, 73, 165–181.
Sapadin, L. A. (1988). Friendship and gender: Perspectives of professional men and women. Journal of Social and Personal Relationships, 5, 387–403.
Searle-White, J. (1996). Personal boundaries among Russians and Americans: A Vygotskian approach. Cross-Cultural Research, 30, 184–208.
Schultze, S. (2000). Culture and customs of Russia. Westport, CT: Greenwood Press.
Sheets, V. L., & Lugar, R. (2004). Sources of conflict between friends in Russia and the United States. Manuscript submitted for publication.
Sherrod, D. (1989). The influence of gender on same-sex friendships. Review of Personality and Social Psychology, 10, 164–186.
Sprecher, S., & Hatfield, E. (1996). Premarital sexual standards among U.S. college students: Comparison with Russian and Japanese students. Archives of Sexual Behavior, 25, 261–288.
Swain, S. (1989). Covert intimacy: Closeness in men’s friendships. In B. J. Risman & P. Schwartz (Eds.), Gender in intimate relationships (pp. 71–86). Belmont, CA: Wadsworth.
Triandis, H. C., Bontempo, R., Villareal, M. J., Asai, M., & Lucca, N. (1988). Individualism and collectivism: Cross-cultural perspectives on self in group relationships. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 54, 323–338.
Vogel, E. (1965). From friendship to comradeship: The change in personal relations in communist China. China Quarterly, 21, 46–60.
West, L., Anderson, J., & Duck, S. (1996). Crossing the barriers to friendships between men and women. In J. T. Wood (Ed.), Gendered relationships (pp. 111–127). Mountain View, CA: Mayfield.
Wood, J. T. (1994). Gendered lives: Communication, gender, & culture. Belmont, CA: Wadsworth.
Wood, J. T. (2000). Gender and personal relationships. In C. Hendrick & S. S. Hendrick (Eds.), Close relationships: A sourcebook (pp. 301–313). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.
Wood, J. T., & Inman, C. C. (1993). In a different mode: Masculine styles of communicating closeness. Journal of Applied Communication Research, 21, 279–295.
Wright, P. H. (1985). The Acquaintance Description Form. In S. Duck & D. Perlman (Eds.), Understanding personal relationships: An interdisciplinary approach (pp. 39–62). London: Sage.
Wright, P. H. (1989). Gender differences in adults’ same- and cross-gender friendships. In R. G. Adams & R. Blieszner (Eds.), Older adult friendships (pp. 197–221). Newbury Park, CA: Sage.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Sheets, V.L., Lugar, R. Friendship and Gender in Russia and the United States. Sex Roles 52, 131–140 (2005). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11199-005-1200-0
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11199-005-1200-0