Like Attracting Like

My best friend Sarah and I met on a cold fall day in sixth grade in English class. We sat on opposite sides of the room since her last name started with an S and my last name started with an A. I was the nerdy girl who the teacher relied on for various administrative tasks and she was the nerdy girl who lingered after class and talked with the teacher about books she should be reading. Yet, somehow we never talked to each other until one day when our teacher put us in a group project together about the book Fahrenheit 451. The conversation went from book banning and anti-socialism to “America’s Funniest Home Videos” within a matter of minutes. Must I remind you we were in middle school? We realized we both loved that show; it was that single similarity that sparked a friendship that has lasted over twenty years. Like attracts like; however, as a University of Illinois at Chicago study demonstrates, that may not always lead to a desired situation.

According to results from this study, young adults who engage in risky sexual activities are more likely to befriend other young adults with similar sexual attitudes. Over 1,300 young male and female adults between the ages of 15 and 18 participated in this research study through their involvement with the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health. This study includes participants from all over the nation and tests various health-related factors including family, community, individual and peer variables. Those involved with the study wanted to determine whether young adults were more likely to begin acting like their friends who were more sexually risky or if young adults simply sought out friends who had attitudes about sex and risky behavior that more resembled their own.

Researchers defined sexual activity as being risky by determining the number of each participant’s different sexual partners and how many of those sexual encounters took place without a condom. Part of the study also focused on gathering research from the participants on what their feelings were concerning negative sexual consequences, like sexually transmitted diseases. Results from the study seemed to support both abovementioned theories. On one side, it was determined that some young adults’ sexual behaviors can greatly influence those behaviors of their friends. For example, if a young adult had an unprotected sexual encounter, it was highly likely that their friends would begin to do the same thing soon after. On the other side, if one young adult abstained from risky sexual behavior then it could quite easily influence their friend/s to change their attitudes to match. As might be expected, females were more prone to change their behaviors and attitudes to fit their friends’ behavior than males.

Also, results of the study demonstrated that some young adults chose their friends based on similarities of attitudes. Young adults who abstained from risky sexual behavior were more apt to seek out friends and maintain friendships with those who did the same. Both males and females were equal in seeking out these types of friendships, although Hispanic young adults did not do this as much as white and African American young adults.

David Henry, one of the lead researchers and authors of this study states, “This study has two implications for prevention. First, it supports the use of adolescent leaders for preventive interventions. Second, it suggests that interventions that use attitude change to change behavior may be more effective among females than among males.”