Editing Flirting (section)

== Cultural variations ==
Flirting behavior varies between cultures due to different modes of social etiquette, such as [[proxemics|how closely people should stand]], how long to hold eye contact, how much touching is appropriate and so forth.<ref>{{cite web | url=http://www.spiegel.de/international/0,1518,419712,00.html | title=Scoring a German: Flirting with Fräuleins, Hunting for Herren | date=5 June 2006 | accessdate=6 May 2023 | newspaper=Spiegel International | quote=HE SAYS: ... German women, though, have become conditioned to a much more subtle style of coquetry. Interest is indicated by way of a studied, concentrated look on the part of the man -- a gaze which may, but often doesn't, include a smile. Rather than a stare, though, the look should be brief and fleeting -- and the man's job is done. In a German-on-German flirt, the power rests solidly with the Fräulein. [....] SHE SAYS: ... The bottom line, though, is that it is often up to the foreign woman to break the ice in a way the German man understands: heavy on the warm-yet-serious discussion and lighter on the flippant-friendly-sexy thing. Flirting in Germany is not nearly as fun, meaningless or flattering as it is elsewhere. But the sometimes awkward but also deliciously subtle dance between the genders here might just grow on you.}}</ref> Nonetheless, some behaviors may be universal. Ethologist [[Irenäus Eibl-Eibesfeldt]] discovered that women from different continents (Africa and North America) behave similarly in some ways when flirting, such as nonchalantly breaking their gaze and smiling after first staring for a prolonged period of time.<ref name="Marueen">{{cite web | access-date=6 May 2023 | url=https://www.smh.com.au/lifestyle/life-and-relationships/m03aboutlastnight-20161118-gssbxl.html | title=About Last Night: Where do I draw the line with flirting? | date=29 Nov 2016 | author=Matthews, Maureen | language=en | quote=Q: I'm a guy who loves to flirt but it can get me into trouble. How do you judge the line between harmless flirting, seduction, sexual harassment, leading someone on, being inappropriate, and so on? It feels like a social minefield.  A: It seems that some form of flirting is universal in social intercourse. | website=The Sydney Morning Herald}}</ref>
[[File:In the harem (unknown date), by Vincent G. Stiepevich.jpg|thumb|234x234px|An [[Algerians|Algerian]] woman flirts with a resting man while playing the [[kwitra]] ]]
In "contact cultures," such as those in the Mediterranean or Latin America, closer proximity is common, compared with cultures such as those in Britain or Northern Europe. The variation in social norms may lead to different interpretations of what is considered to be flirting.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.sirc.org/publik/flirt.html| title=SIRC Guide to Flirting|publisher=Sirc.org|access-date= 2010-06-23}}</ref>

Japanese courtesans had another form of flirting, emphasizing non-verbal relationships by hiding the lips and showing the eyes, as depicted in much [[Shunga (art)|Shunga art]], the most popular print media at the time, until the late 19th century. In [[Japan]], flirting in the street or public places is known as ''[[nanpa]]''.

The fan was extensively used as a means of communication and therefore a way of flirting from the 16th century onwards in some European societies, especially [[England]] and [[Spain]]. A whole sign language was developed with the use of the fan, and [[etiquette]] books and magazines were published. Charles Francis Badini created the Original Fanology or Ladies' Conversation Fan, which was published by William Cock in [[London]] in 1797. The use of the fan was not limited to women, as men also carried fans and learned how to convey messages with them. For instance, placing the fan near the heart meant "I love you", while opening a fan wide meant "Wait for me".<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.avictorian.com/fanlanguage.html|publisher=Avictorian.com| title=Ladies and their Fans|access-date= 2010-06-23}}</ref>

In Spain, ladies used fans to communicate with suitors or prospective suitors without attracting the notice of their families or [[Chaperone (social)|chaperons]]. This use was highly popular during the 19th and early 20th centuries.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://spainforvisitors.com/module-News-display-sid-236.htm|publisher=Spainforvisitors.com|title=The Language of the Fan|access-date=2010-06-23|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100626234341/http://spainforvisitors.com/module-News-display-sid-236.htm|archive-date=2010-06-26|url-status=dead}}</ref>

=== Gendered roles===
{{Main|Dating#Gendered norms and preferences}}
[[File:Eugen de Blaas The Flirtation.jpg|thumb|''The Flirtation'' by [[Eugene de Blaas]]. A study of body language: a man flirting]]
Certain types of flirting seem to vary by gender. Henningsen and colleagues' study demonstrated that flirting with sexual intent was found to be more prominent amongst men while flirting for relationship development purposes was more often employed by women.<ref name="Flirting with meaning: an examinati" /> Henningsen also found that women may engage in "practice flirting," that is, behavior to evaluate potential partners.<ref name="Flirting with meaning: an examinati" />

The [[parental investment|parental investment theory]] predicts based on [[evolutionary biology]] in case of a risk of [[pregnancy]] with gender differences in [[parental investment]], that females would be more selective than males and courtship would be more commonly initiated by males.<ref>{{cite book| last1=Campbell| first1=Bernard| title= Sexual selection and the descent of man| date=1972| publisher=Aldine| pages=1871–1971}}</ref> In case of no risk of [[pregnancy]] this gendered effect is predicted to be reduced.<ref name="m376">{{cite journal | last=Woodward | first=Kevin | last2=Richards | first2=Miriam H. | title=The parental investment model and minimum mate choice criteria in humans | journal=Behavioral Ecology | volume=16 | issue=1 | date=1 January 2005 | issn=1465-7279 | doi=10.1093/beheco/arh121 | doi-access=free | pages=57–61 | url=https://academic.oup.com/beheco/article-pdf/16/1/57/17274400/arh121.pdf | access-date=5 January 2025}}</ref>

===Gender egalitarian roles===
Flirting can follow [[Gender equality|gender egalitarian]] norms.<ref name="p358">{{cite journal | last=Lamont | first=Ellen | title=Negotiating Courtship | journal=Gender & Society | publisher=SAGE Publications | volume=28 | issue=2 | date=23 September 2013 | issn=0891-2432 | doi=10.1177/0891243213503899 | pages=189–211}}</ref> Direct opening lines by women were evaluated as more effective by men.<ref name="q483">{{cite journal | last=Joel Wade | first=T. | last2=Butrie | first2=Lauren K. | last3=Hoffman | first3=Kelly M. | title=Women’s direct opening lines are perceived as most effective | journal=Personality and Individual Differences | volume=47 | issue=2 | date=2009 | doi=10.1016/j.paid.2009.02.016 | pages=145–149 | url=https://linkinghub.elsevier.com/retrieve/pii/S0191886909000907 | access-date=22 April 2025}}</ref>