Gender-differentiated experience in the peer culture: Links to intimacy inpreadolescence

This study tested claims that gender differences in intimacy are attributab le to gender-differentiated experiences in the peer culture (i.e., male and female 'worlds'). Participants were 188 Canadian preadolescents (10-12 yea rs, 106 girls) who completed questionnaires regarding the intimacy of their same-sex best friendship, intimate support received from peers, and two di mensions of culture-gender composition of the friendship network and partic ipation in communal (i.e., intimacy-promoting) and agentic (intimacy-repres sing) activities. Consistent with the 'two worlds' explanation (a) communal activity participation related positively and team sports to same-sex frie ndship intimacy, but the latter only for boys, and (b) having other-sex fri ends predicted same-sex friendship intimacy for boys but not girls. The two worlds explanation, though supported, requires revision to accommodate fin dings that male and female preadolescents' activity participation overlappe d considerably, intimate friendships were not limited to intimate contexts, agentic activities potentiated both agentic and communal goals, and peer c ultural variables predicted intimacy better for boys than girls.