Abstract:
The study focused on the levels of intimacy displayed by the men with
bromances in a single seminary. Centered on how these men showed intimate
behavior towards one another, as well as what this intimacy meant for their
relationship the study was geared towards understanding how these men from an all male
religious background interacted with one another and how these interactions
manifested itself into a new form of intimate relationship between men. The researcher opted for a multiphase pseudo-ethnographical method in the
study. Preliminary data was acquired through a series of interviews and Focus Group
Discussions with self-proclaimed men with bromances done via snowballing. This
data was then used in order to create a Bromance Checklist. Choosing a single
seminary based on convenience and focusing on the four year levels of the college,
the researcher administered this checklist to the seminarians and the results of these were analyzed and discussed via interviews and Focus groups discussions A brief pseudo-ethnography was also conducted in order to see these bromances in action, as well as determine the effects of the environment towards their relationships.
Results showed that the intimacy in bromances in seminaries occurred through
stages via components of intimacy, starting from Commitment then Interdependence
then Trust, followed by Knowledge, then to Care, and finally Mutuality. Furthermore,
it was established that skinship or physical affection was one of the primary
distinguishing factors of bromances. Also the major factor in bromantic intimacy was
exclusivity, the more exclusive an activity (whether physical or emotional) the more
bromantic it was. It was also determined that bromances in seminaries were both
encouraged and dissuaded by the environment as well as the administration, leading
to a completely different set of boundaries from bromances outside the seminary.
