The effects of gender and type of romantic touch on perceptions of relational commitment

This study investigated the relationship between intimate touching behaviors and corresponding cognitions of relational commitment as a function of gender. One hundred fifty-two subjects were surveyed regarding perceptions of commitment for seven intimate touches. The 2-way ANOVA revealed significant effects for gender, type of touch, and the touch by gender interaction. Progressively intimate touches were associated with greater commitment. Females associated significantly higher levels of commitment than males, particularly for the more intimate touches. The discrepancy in the level of commitment inferred by gender increases as the touching behavior grows more intimate, resulting in a greater potential for miscommunication across the more intimate channels of haptic communication.

Johnson, K. L., & Edwards, R. (1991). The effects of gender and type of romantic touch on perceptions of relational commitment . Journal of Nonverbal Behavior, 15(1), 43-55.

This study was extremely interesting to see the difference in touch between men and women. Women committing more to the intimate touches came as no surprise. However, I thought it very interesting to see that in the more intimate channels of haptic communication, there is a greater risk for miscommunication, especially between men and women. When men and women are intimate, we are supposed to be able to pick up on the intimate touches and their meanings, not miscommunicate them. I think if we studied more of what men and women do as their level of intimate touch increases, we can eliminate a lot of miscommunication between the two.