Straight women and homosexual men are the most natural allies, according to science Straight women and homosexual men are the most natural allies Relationship characterised by a lack of sexual competition and deception Straight women more trusting of gay men over women or straight men Study by psychologists at Texas Christian University Findings published in Evolutionary Psychology By Martha De Lacey Will and Grace, Karen and Jack, Carrie and Stanford, Charlotte and Anthony... four great on-screen love stories of our time. And each completely platonic because all the men in question are gay. But these four fictional pairings between straight women and homosexual men might actually represent the most natural, mutually-beneficial, rewarding, helpful and equal human relationship that can be achieved, according to scientific research. Especially when it comes to finding a romantic partner. Characterised by a lack of both competition and ulterior motives in terms of searching for a sexual partner or giving advice, the gay-man-straight-woman relationship is win-win, say psychologists at Texas Christian University, who published their study in Evolutionary Psychology. Will & Grace title stars Eric McCormack and Debra Messing, left, and their friends Jack and Karen, played by Sean Hayes and Megan Mullally, right Author Eric Russell and his colleagues claim the age-old unique relationship between the homosexual male and the heterosexual female serves a 'biologically adaptive function'. They say: 'Because straight women's relationships with straight men and other straight women are often tainted by deceptive motives related to mating interest or competition, respectively, we predicted that straight women would perceive mating-relevant information provided by a gay male to be more trustworthy than similar advice provided by a straight male or straight female.' Similarly, 'the sexual interest and competitive motives that may taint gay men's friendships with each other are notably absent from their relationships with straight women', said Scientific American, reporting the study. The teamcarried out two experiments with participants during the study, exploring 'a potential benefit hypothesized to be uniquely available to straight women and gay men in the context of these friendships: trustworthy mating advice'. The relationship between straight women and gay men - as seen in sitcom Will & Grace between both Will and Grace, centre, and Jack and Karen, ends - is mutually-beneficial Experiment one revealed straight women perceive mating advice from gay men as more trustworthy than similar advice offered by a straight man or woman. Experiment two demonstrated that gay men perceive mating advice offered by a straight woman to be more trustworthy than advice offered by a lesbian woman or another gay man. The results provide initial experimental evidence that relationships between gay men and straight women may be characterized by a mutual exchange of mating-relevant benefits in the absence of romantic interest or competition.