scholarly journals Reciprocal Relations between Emerging Adults’ Representations of Relationships with Mothers, Fathers, and Romantic Partners

2019 ◽  
Vol 59 (2) ◽  
pp. 807-821
Author(s):  
Go Woon Suh ◽  
William V. Fabricius
2016 ◽  
Vol 41 (1) ◽  
pp. 136-142 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tomo Umemura ◽  
Lenka Lacinová ◽  
Petr Macek ◽  
E. Saskia Kunnen

Only a few studies have longitudinally explored to whom emerging adults prefer to turn to seek closeness, comfort, and security (called “attachment preferences”), and previous studies on attachment preferences in emerging adults have focused only on the beginning of romantic relationships but not on the end of relationships. Czech emerging adults ( M = 21.47; SD = 1.48) completed the questionnaire of attachment preferences at two time points, Wave 1 (Summer 2013) and Wave 2 (Summer 2014). Latent difference score analyses revealed that emerging adults who were not in a romantic relationship in Wave 1 but started a romantic relationship between the two waves ( n = 97) and those who had a romantic partner in both waves ( n = 379) were both more likely to increase their attachment preference for the romantic partner and decrease their preference for friends, whereas those who did not start a relationship ( n = 185) were not. Emerging adults who were in a romantic relationship in Wave 1 but were not in Wave 2 ( n = 69) decreased their preference for the partner and increased their preference for friends. In all the groups, attachment preferences for the mother, for the father, or for the family did not change. Multiple regression analyses further revealed that for those who had a romantic partner in both waves, their length of romantic relationship was associated with changes in attachment preferences for romantic partners and for friends.


2021 ◽  
pp. 1-18
Author(s):  
Gaia Cuccì ◽  
Maria Giulia Olivari ◽  
Emanuela Confalonieri

In Italy the Covid-19 pandemic and the lockdown have deeply changed the way Italian people used to live. Many emerging adults had to self-distance from their romantic partners and modify the way of communicating and relating to each other. Thus managing a romantic relationship could be very challenging.The study quantitatively and qualitatively investigates the association between Lockdown related negative emotions, perception of the romantic relationship quality, changes in the relationship's characteristics and conflict within the couple. The sample consists of 171 emerging adults involved in a romantic relationship, who spent the time of lockdown apart from the romantic partner.Results showed that the perception of the relationship quality was not greatly associated with Lockdown related negative emotions, but was associated with changes and higher conflict within the relationship. Qualitative data support and enrich these results. Changes and conflicts within the relationship were due to: difficulties to communicate, lack of intimacy, awareness about relationship importance or presence of emotionaldetachment between partners.


2021 ◽  
pp. ds210011
Author(s):  
MaryJane S. Campbell ◽  
Avia Gray ◽  
Deborah J. Wiebe ◽  
Cynthia A. Berg

2021 ◽  
pp. 216769682199771
Author(s):  
Jian Jiao ◽  
Chris Segrin

Attachment theory articulates that social and personal interactions influence individuals’ attachment characteristics. Although research has revealed various negative consequences of overparenting among offspring, very few studies have looked at the attachment features of overparented emerging adults. Relying on cross-sectional data collected from 231 emerging adults ( M age = 24.22 years, 57.1% females) recruited from Amazon’s Mechanical Turk (MTurk), the present study examined the associations between overparenting and emerging adults’ insecure attachment (i.e., attachment anxiety and/or avoidance) in parent-offspring and romantic contexts, and if overparented emerging adults delay marriages. Results showed that overparenting was robustly associated with emerging adults’ insecure attachment with both parents and romantic partners, and overparented emerging adults were less likely to be married. Overall, the findings suggest that overparenting practices, although seemingly well-intentioned, might indeed create barriers for emerging adults to develop and maintain positive and healthy relationships.


Author(s):  
Varda Konstam

This chapter examines the ways in which technology influences the romantic behavior of emerging adults. From meeting new romantic partners to managing existing relationships to breaking up and recovering from breakups, computer-mediated communication (CMC) is entwined with romance. The ways in which CMC can objectify users and overwhelm them with too many choices are examined here. The chapter also examines dating apps as well as technologically influenced behaviors and challenges, such as “technoference” and sexting. The 29 study participants share their thoughts and experiences related to CMC and social networking sites, and how the inevitable presence of technology has affected their romantic lives.


2017 ◽  
Vol 33 (15) ◽  
pp. 2311-2334 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rachel C. Garthe ◽  
Brandon J. Griffin ◽  
Everett L. Worthington ◽  
Elizabeth A. Goncy ◽  
Terri N. Sullivan ◽  
...  

Theory and research suggest that an individual’s negative interactions with his or her parents or romantic partner are associated with the perpetration of dating abuse. Research is beginning to explore the role of forgivingness within abusive romantic relationships, and these preliminary findings suggest that dispositional forgivingness might mediate the relations between negative interpersonal interactions and dating abuse. The current study assessed negative interactions with one’s parents and one’s romantic partner, the frequency of dating abuse perpetration, and dispositional forgivingness of others and oneself among a sample of emerging adults in college ( n = 421). Dispositional forgivingness of others was negatively associated with the perpetration of emotional/verbal dating abuse and threatening behaviors, and it mediated relations between negative interpersonal interactions and dating abuse perpetration. Our findings suggest that the tendency to forgive others may explain why some individuals who experience negative interpersonal interactions with parents or romantic partners do not escalate to perpetration of abuse within their romantic relationships. Implications for future research and application are discussed.


2016 ◽  
Vol 33 (1) ◽  
pp. 34-57 ◽  
Author(s):  
Laura S. Abrams ◽  
Christina C. Tam

Life course theory suggests that the social bond of marriage can serve as a pivotal turning point toward the termination of criminal activity, particularly for men. Yet limited research has investigated how young adult men and women utilize social bonds forged outside of marriage to facilitate desistance from crime. This study explored gender differences in how formerly incarcerated emerging adults navigate and utilize their social bonds with peers and romantic partners on the journey toward criminal desistance. Two semi-structured qualitative interviews and a social mapping exercise were conducted with 14 emerging adults (seven men and seven women) with extensive histories of juvenile incarceration. With regard to friends, the young women found peer support often inconsistent, leading to an overarching theme of self-reliance. Some of the young men used peer supports with an overarching theme of reciprocity, while others used peer supports very sparingly in order to avoid contact with criminal associations or potential danger. With regard to romantic partnerships, these relationships proved much more supportive of desistance goals for the young men and the contrary was the case for the young women in heterosexual partnerships. These findings add to a growing literature about the process of desistance for emerging adults.


Author(s):  
Brian J. Willoughby ◽  
Spencer L. James

This chapter explores beliefs that emerging adults hold about mate selection, or the process people go through to select romantic partners. An overview is provided of mate-selection theories, and the main themes that emerged from the interview data are detailed. Emerging adults appear to desire very different things when it comes to short-term and long-term dating partners, and this creates a unique paradox because emerging adults must shift their dating criteria when they decide to marry. Many emerging adults still very much believe in the concept of a soul mate. Cohabitation is discussed as a mechanism through which emerging adults hope to uncover what their dating partners are truly like.


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