Norms Regulating Self-Disclosure among Polish University Students

The reactions of Polish university students about norms governing self-disclosure as a function of degree of friendship and discloser's sex were assessed. In the first study most American norms governing reactions to self-disclosure to friends and strangers were replicated. Disclosure of personal information to a stranger is disapproved, whereas disclosure to a friend is approved. Somewhat different from the American data, Polish students disapproved of nondisclosure to a friend but not to a stranger. In the second study American norms governing self-disclosure to males and females were not replicated. Polish students did not judge differently disclosure by males and females. These results seem to reflect different attitudes about sex roles governing self-disclosure by American versus Polish subjects.