Contrary to the long-held view that women are motivated by romance and commitment when it comes to relationships, one in three are happy to use men for sex, new research has found.
The poll by MyCelebrityFashion.co.uk revealed that 34% of women had embarked on a 'friends with benefits' realtionship with a male friend. Half of those said they had done so because they did not want anything serious.
A further 19% indulged in no-strings-attached sex because they wanted "to have fun" while for 22% the situation was "not planned."
But not all women are happy to sustain a casual fling with 8% hoping things might develop into something more serious.
That's exactly what happened for Mila Kunis and Justin Timberlake in the romcom, Friends With Benefits, in which the pair embark on a no-strings-attached relationship but soon realise they want to be a couple. Well, who wouldn't, with Justin Timberlake?
Andy Barr of MyCelebrityFashion.co.uk, said: "The idea of 'friends with benefits' is growing in popularity. Perhaps people shouldn't automatically think all women want to settle down right away and have a serious relationship."
But before you put your best male friend on speed dial, beware. A recent study by New York University found that no-strings-attached relationships are unlikely to end well. The study of that most 'friends with benefits' arrangements failed because one of the partners wanted more out of the relationship than the other
Lead researcher Rebecca Plante, of Ithaca College in New York, who interviewed 14,000 US university students, said: "The sexual context of 'friends with benefits' is largely undefined, which can make it very difficult to deal with, when or if feelings change, such as when one of the pair wants to end the sex but remain friends or wants to become more than friends."