When it comes to friendships between men and women, many people believe there is always the potential for more than just friendship. But how does that belief change when the woman in the friendship dresses or acts more like “one of the guys” rather than someone who could be a romantic rival?

A recently published study Personality and individual differences explored this fascinating question and found that women who prefer male friends are generally perceived by other women as less trustworthy, more sexually promiscuous, and a greater threat to romantic relationships. However, these perceptions may change depending on the woman’s self-presentation.

Friendships between men and women (cross-gender friendships) have long been the subject of suspicion. Previous research has shown that women who prefer male friends are often viewed as less trustworthy and more sexually promiscuous, which can lead to social aggression and exclusion from other women. However, researchers had not examined how a woman’s gender expression – how masculine or feminine she appears – influences these perceptions.

“My interest in this topic was sparked by my mentor and current colleague Dr. Hannah Bradshaw, who recently published a paper on this topic,” explains study author Julia Hurwitz, a doctoral student in experimental psychology at Oklahoma State University and member of the Oklahoma Center for Evolutionary Analysis (OCEAN).

“I had just joined her lab as a student assistant, where she had us read her paper as an assignment. When we met during our lab meeting, I asked her if she had ever thought about manipulating the gender expression of the target (the ‘girl’) and seeing how that affected the perception of other women who prefer men as friends. I thought that women with more masculine interests might be characterized as less threatening than feminine women and therefore viewed as ‘one of the guys’ rather than a potential mating threat.”

To examine how gender expression affects women’s perceptions of their preference for cross-sex friendships, researchers conducted three separate experiments, each focusing on different aspects of gender expression. In all experiments, heterosexual women were asked to rate female targets based on manipulated profiles or pictures. Each target was described as someone who preferred either male or female friends.

Study 1 focused on interests and hobbies. Researchers created social media profiles for a fictional female college student and manipulated her gender expression by assigning her either male or female hobbies and career goals. For example, the “male” profile might include interests such as sports and the career goal of becoming an engineer, while the “female” profile might include hobbies such as dancing and the goal of becoming an elementary school teacher.

Study 2 shifted the focus to clothing. Participants were shown social media posts of the same fictional woman getting ready for a wedding. The main difference was what she planned to wear: a masculine suit or a feminine dress. Study 3 examined facial features. Researchers used images of the woman’s face that were digitally altered to appear more masculine or feminine.

In all three studies, participants were asked to rate the target’s trustworthiness, perceived sexual promiscuity, sexual orientation, masculinity/femininity, and their own likelihood of engaging in mate guarding behavior—actions taken to protect a romantic relationship from potential rivals (e.g., “How likely are you to introduce the target to your friend?”).

Across all three studies, researchers found consistent evidence that women who prefer male friends are viewed more negatively by other women in general. Specifically, women who had more male friends were perceived as less trustworthy, more sexually promiscuous, and a greater threat to other women’s romantic relationships. These findings support previous research suggesting that women who prefer male friends often face social aggression from other women.

However, the influence of gender expression on these perceptions was more complex. In Study 1, where gender expression was manipulated by interests and hobbies, researchers found that while participants recognized the male or female nature of the profiles, this did not significantly change their overall perceptions of the woman’s trustworthiness or sexual promiscuity.

Study 2, which focused on clothing, provided the most compelling evidence that gender expression can mitigate negative perceptions. Women who dressed masculinely were viewed as more trustworthy and less sexually revealing than women who dressed femininely, particularly if they preferred male friends.

In Study 3, which examined facial features, the results were less clear. Although masculine faces were perceived as more masculine, this did not significantly change participants’ perceptions of trustworthiness, sexual promiscuity, or mate-protective behavior. The researchers speculated that the subtlety of the facial changes may not have been enough to elicit strong responses from participants.

Interestingly, in the first and second studies, women who presented themselves in a more masculine manner were also more likely to be perceived as homosexual. This perception may explain why these women (in Study 2) were viewed as less of a romantic threat—if other women assume that a masculine-appearing woman is not interested in men, they may feel less of a need to protect their romantic partners from her.

“Overall, the results suggest that women tend to dislike other women who prefer male friends, regardless of gender identity. However, there is a caveat to this. Same-sex attraction is sometimes inferred when women present themselves in a masculine way (e.g., through their clothing as in Study 2). This assumed same-sex attraction may explain why women seem less suspicious of masculine ‘boys’ and girls who prefer male friends.”

However, like all research, this study has limitations that open the possibility of further investigation. One caveat is that the researchers did not consider participants’ own friendship preferences or their perceptions of their own gender expression. This is important because women who themselves prefer male friends may perceive the targets differently than those who prefer female friendships. Examining these individual differences could provide deeper insights into how personal experiences shape perceptions of others in social contexts.

Authors of the study “One of the types: Are masculine women less of a mating threat?” are Julia F. Hurwitz and Hannah K. Bradshaw.