What type of friendship mix might maximise our wellbeing? Read more in a new paper in Psychological Science from the British Psychological Society.

If many of your friends are similar to you in age, ethnicity, educational background, and income, you certainly aren’t alone. “Human beings show a preference for interacting with similar others,” note the University of Birmingham’s Miguel R. Ramos and colleagues in a new paper in Psychological Science. This tendency, known as homophily, is thought to help the formation of tight social networks.

However, studies also show that many of us feel a drive to connect with different kinds of people, too. This drive could in theory give us access to new resources, experiences, and opportunities to collaborate with others, conveying a number of social benefits.