Amizade na adultez: fatores individuais, ambientais, situacionais e diádicos

The present study investigated individual, environmental, situational, and dyadic factors in best-friends relationships according to Fehr’s model. The participants, 676 adults 18 to 58 years-old, completed questionnaires to assess factors related to Fehr’s model. The results showed the importance of living proximity as an environmental factor in the establishment of friendships in general and of similarity in the constitution of friendship, mainly between males and their friends. Among women, the frequency of contact by phone was a major factor. The high frequency of additional best-friends for both men and women raised questions about their understanding of what is a best-friend and about the use of this construct to describe an exclusive and high status relationship between two individuals. Keywords: friendship; relationships; adulthood.