Abstract
College students attributed meaning on a questionnaire to 31 types of nonreciprocal touch occurring in opposite-sex romantic relationships. Subject sex and origin of touch (self vs. partner) had minor effects on attributed meanings. Subjects most often perceived these touches as expressing warmth/love, and rarely as expressing dominance/control.
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The authors are grateful to Richard Heslin and Jeffrey Fisher for their assistance in designing the study, and to C. Van Nelson for assistance in data analysis.
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Pisano, M.D., Wall, S.M. & Foster, A. Perceptions of nonreciprocal touch in romantic relationships. J Nonverbal Behav 10, 29–40 (1986). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00987203
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00987203