The study, however, does not explore gender as an issue in relations to friendships. As noted above, reports of this nature in the research literature are not conclusive, however, they indicate that women tend to be overrepresented as friends of people with disabilities. The same gender pattern can be found in the literature that focuses on efforts to promote and facilitate social connections between people with disabilities and other community members. Authors also argue that friendships are important for people with disabilities, because, like other people, they need intimate friends to talk to, and share their deepest feelings and thoughts with. The literature on friendship in the general population shows that emotional closeness, intimacy, support, and acceptance are aspects that characterize women's friendships.
Men typically shy away from closeness and intimacy in their friendships.
Instead, men's friendships tend to be centered around shared activities. Thus, the way friendships between people with and without disabilities are described in the disability literature has a strong resemblance to friendships among women, even when one, or both, of the friends are men. The construction of friendships between people with and without disabilities as a womanly relationship is further strengthened by the language used to describe the qualities of those who become friends of people with disabilities. Women have traditionally filled the role of helpers and nurturers and this language strengthens the image of friendships between people with and without disabilities as a feminine relationship. While the gendered construction of friendships between people with and without disabilities is probably unconscious, this sends a powerful message indicating that these are friendships that are more appropriate for women than for men.