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Biomedical subjects

F N Willis

Publications and source records attributed to F N Willis.

11 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed1998

Age, relationship, and touch initiation.

Gender asymmetry in touch in U.S. populations is related to the age of the participants in some studies and to the relationships between the participants in others. In the present study, researchers observed dyads in public settings in the United States frequented by couples and recorded the occurrence of touch, the touch initiator, and the body areas touched. The researchers then approached the couples and asked them to complete questionnaires indicating their ages, their relationship, and their level of agreement on major issues. Age and relationship were predictive of the gender of touch initiators. Although levels of agreement were less predictive of touch initiation, the women indicated higher levels of agreement than the men did. The results were generally consistent with a model of sex differences in reproductive strategies.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1994

Gender and national differences in attitudes toward same-gender touch.

Women have been reported to be more positive about same-gender touch, but cross-cultural information about this touch is limited. Male and female students from Chile (n = 26), Spain (n = 61), Malaysia (n = 32), and the US (n = 77) completed a same-gender touch scale. As in past studies, US women had more positive scores than US men. Malaysians had more negative scores than the other three groups. Spanish and US students had more positive scores than Chilean students. National differences in attitudes toward particular types of touch were also noted. The need for new methods for examining cross-cultural differences in touch was discussed.

Adult↗
PubMed1993

Spatial displacement among pedestrians: a cross-cultural replication.

An observational study of pedestrians in a shopping mall in a mid-western U.S. city was replicated in shopping malls in London. The avoidance movements of 2692 shoppers were recorded as they approached other shoppers. The relationships between these movements and the shoppers' gender, age, race, group size, and other characteristics were examined. Results of both studies indicated that men were likely to be displaced by women, smaller groups by larger ones, and nonhandicapped persons by handicapped ones. The results differed, however, with respect to race, with black persons tending to displace white individuals in the Midwest regardless of group size, while lone white pedestrians tended to displace lone black pedestrians in London. In London larger groups tended to displace smaller ones regardless of race. Hypotheses regarding spatial displacement were discussed. The need for more cross-situational and cross-cultural research in social psychology was clear.

Adult↗
PubMed1983

A personal log method for investigating interpersonal touch.

Most of the research on interpersonal touch has involved public settings but much of our significant contact takes place in private settings. The body-accessibility studies included touch in both public and private settings, but rates of touch and settings were not reported. In the present study 76 subjects kept a log of touches received, their relationship to the toucher, the setting, and their rating of the pleasantness of the touch. There were no gender differences in rates of touch. Most touches occurred in private settings, particularly touches in personal body areas. A variety of sexual touches were reported.

Environment↗
PubMed1978

Interpersonal touch among adults in cafeteria lines.

Previous studies have indicated that interpersonal touch decreases with age. In the present study 1012 pairs of college students and 212 pairs of elderly subjects were observed in cafeteria queues. Instances of touch were recorded along with sex, race, and body parts used to touch and touched. College students segregated themselves by race and sex just as the younger students had been observed to do in previous studies. Unlike all previous studies the elderly subjects did not segregate themselves by gender. For college students, touch was highest for female to male combinations; blacks were more likely to touch other blacks and least likely to touch whites. Touch was more likely among elderly subjects for female to female interactions than it was for college students, but there were no differences for the other gender combinations. In college students personal body areas were used to touch those of different gender while impersonal body areas were used to touch those of the same gender; personal body areas were more likely to be touched by others of the other gender. For elderly subjects there were no differences in frequencies with which personal or impersonal areas were involved in touch in relation to gender for either area used to touch or area touched.

Adult↗
PubMed1976

Interpersonal touch in high school relative to sex and race.

Previous studies have indicated that interpersonal touch decreases from kindergarten through junior high. In the present study 1154 pairs of high school students were observed in school cafeteria queues. Instances of touch were recorded along with body parts used to touch and touched. High school students were observed to segregate themselves by race and sex as did the primary and junior high students in the earlier studies. Touch was not less probable than that observed in younger students. Cross-sex touch was not more frequent as had been predicted. Touch was highest among black students. An increase in aggressive touch seen in female junior high students was not observed in the present study.

Adolescent↗