Conceptions and the experience of friendship in underrepresented groups

Abstract

The authors reviewed the literature on the meaning and experience of friendship for members of underrepresented groups (sexual orientation and gender diversity, race and ethnicity). It is argued that many of the variables that contribute to friendship formation among mainstream groups (found in past research) also apply to underrepresented groups (e.g., environments that bring people into contact with one another, homophily). There also are commonalities in the friendship maintenance processes of mainstream and underrepresented groups (e.g., self‐disclosure, provision of support). However, the authors' main point is that there are additional challenges and barriers that are encountered by members of sexual and gender diverse groups and racial and ethnic minorities, and the intersections of those identities, particularly when forming and maintaining friendships with people of majority status. The authors elucidate these challenges and discuss interventions for increasing the diversity of friends in people's networks. In addition, the authors identify significant gaps in the literature on the friendship worlds of diverse groups and offer directions for future research.

Intergroup friendship: A reflective spotlight

“…Considering intergroup friendship as a bridge, crossing this bridge depends on how different social contexts in which individuals negotiate personal relationships, are perceived and experienced. There is considerable evidence that these social contexts are challenging (Fehr & Harasymchuk, 2022). Much social psychological research on cross-group dyadic interaction has involved interactions between individuals whose respective social identities reflect group interaction histories in which there has been and/or continues to be intergroup conflict, past or ongoing discrimination or differential advantage.…”

“…Evidence supports the key role of cross‐group friendship in contributing to improved intergroup relations (Page‐Gould et al, 2010; Pettigrew, 1997, 1998). There is, however, strong evidence of homophily, namely friendships formed with individuals who share one's group identities (Fehr & Harasymchuk, 2022; see also McPherson et al, 2001). Forming and maintaining friendships with others exclusively or largely from one's social group(s) limits individuals' social environments, affecting both attitudes and interactions (McPherson et al, 2001).…”

“…Much psychological research on intergroup friendship concerns interracial and interethnic friendship. As dimensions of race and ethnicity are associated with evidence of strong same‐group(s) friendship preferences (Fehr & Harasymchuk, 2022; McPherson et al, 2001) and as such, understanding what leads individuals to expand their social network to develop cross‐group friendships is important. In Davies et al's (2011) meta‐analysis of the relation between cross‐group friendship and intergroup attitudes, nearly 60% of the samples involved interethnic or interracial friendship (see table 4, p. 338).…”

“…In Davies et al's (2011) meta‐analysis of the relation between cross‐group friendship and intergroup attitudes, nearly 60% of the samples involved interethnic or interracial friendship (see table 4, p. 338). Fehr and Harasymchuk (2022) observed that cross‐race friendship has received by far the most empirical attention. Over the past two decades, research on cross‐group dyadic interaction has focused on interracial interactions and their implications for developing friendship.…”

Acquaintanceships (weak ties): Their role in people's web of relationships and their formation

“…In addition, although the boundary between acquaintanceship and friendship is fuzzy (and some acquaintances become friends, as discussed in the second section), the focus of this review is specifically on acquaintances. The literature on friendships has been reviewed elsewhere, including, for example, Fehr and Harasymchuk (2018, 2022).…”