Why Friendships End: An Evolutionary Examination

Menelaos Apostolou, Despoina Keramari

    Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

    Abstract

    People make friendships, some of which last a lifetime, whereas others are shortlived. Within the context of an evolutionary theoretical framework, this study aims to identify the reasons that lead people to terminate a friendship. More specifically, in Study 1, by using a combination of qualitative research methods in a sample of 133 Greek-speaking participants, we identified 55 such reasons. In Study 2, by using exploratory factor analysis in a sample of 557 Greek-speaking participants, we classified these reasons in four broader factors for terminating a friendship. As indicated by the means, the most important factor was selfishness, followed by romantic involvement, the lack of frequent interaction, and the perceptions of friends and family. Moreover, significant sex and age effects were found for most factors.

    Original languageEnglish
    JournalEvolutionary Behavioral Sciences
    DOIs
    Publication statusAccepted/In press - 2021

    Keywords

    • Evolution of friendship
    • Friendship
    • Reciprocal altruism
    • Termination of friendship

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