Experts reveal how many hours of socialising it takes to seal a friendship

Two thirds of those polled said they were actively looking to make new friends

Being there for each other during difficult times was cited as the most important quality in a best friend (Getty Images)

It takes around 34 hours of socialising to form a solid friendship, according to a new study.

The analysis found that the ideal formula for friendship involves 11 interactions, each lasting an average of three hours and four minutes, over the period of five and a half months.

The study also revealed that each person supposedly has five close “shoulder-to-cry-on” friends.

Being there for each other during difficult times was cited as the most important quality in a best friend.

And two-thirds of those who participated in the survey, conducted by menthol sweet brand Fisherman’s Friend, said they were actively seeking to make new friends and needed a good number of friends to feel content.

The research was analysed by Oxford University professor Robin Dunbar, who is renowned for creating Dunbar’s number – a theory suggesting the limit to the number of people with whom we can maintain stable social relationships.

The anthropologist and evolutionary psychologist famously argued that most people are capable of having around 150 meaningful acquaintances, a theory known as “Dunbar’s number”.

This incorporates five intimate friends, around 15 good friends, approximately 50 “social friends” and roughly 150 acquaintances.

“Friendships are the single most important factor influencing both our psychological and our physical health and wellbeing,” said Professor Dunbar.

“‘This study shows how two-thirds of us have a best friend who provides those moments of emotional support and advice when we need it most. This makes finding friends and maintaining friendships all the more important.”

The news follows a 2019 study which revealed that the average American hadn’t made a new friend in five years.

Of those polled, 42 per cent said shyness or introversion prevented them from developing new relationships.

Breaking into a new social circle, an aversion to drinking culture, not having hobbies where they can meet people, and moving to a new city were also cited as reasons behind this.