It has turned out that men who depend on other men for support, advice and companionship could be onto something. A latest study conducted by the University of California, Berkley, has found that when men are social with each other, they could be more resilient to stress.

At least the phenomenon is true in the case of rats. The researchers wanted to know how social relationships can possibly influence rodents' ability of dealing with stress.

The researchers roomed male rats together. They shared same cage, and were exposed to a mild stressor. They noticed that the animals were more social than they tended to be in an environment that wasn't stressful.

Research on human subjects would be more convincing, but it’s worth noting that many times, mice and rats are used as human stand-ins due to their similar brain make-up and physiology. They and humans have numerous same diseases, and similar organs and nervous systems.

The findings reveal that a little stress can really play a crucial part in social bonding, and men, experiencing stress together could be at a benefit of dealing with it more smoothly.

Sandra Muroy, a Berkeley graduate student, who launched the study during her undergrad study, said, “We think oxytocin, which is released after stress, is a way of bringing people closer in times of acute stress, which leads to more sharing, bonding and potentially better fear extinction and an increase in cognitive health”.

The co-author, Elizabeth Kirby, presently a postdoctoral fellow at Stanford University, said that the type of stress experienced by the rats made a difference in their relationships and encouraged them to work together cooperatively.

In a statement, Kirby explained that in case one takes away and return water to rats repeatedly, they generally become quite aggressive, push each other and shove at the water fountain. However, the rat roommates behaved in a different way.