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Emerging adulthood (ages 18-25) is a life stage when many young people explore a variety of romantic and sexual partnerships before they form long-term commitments. The dating landscape has changed markedly in recent years, with many emerging adults taking a less committed approach to relationships and sex (e.g., “friends with benefits,” “talking,” “hooking up”). Much remains unknown about the modern relationship landscape and implications for emerging adults’ well-being.
The TCF lab has worked toward better understanding various types of romantic and sexual partnerships during emerging adulthood, with a focus on their associations with psychological health. We have found that emerging adults in committed romantic relationships report fewer symptoms of depression and anxiety, as well as less hazardous drinking than those who are single (Whitton, Weitbrecht, Kuryluk, & Bruner, 2013).
Further, among emerging adults in committed dating relationships, higher relationship satisfaction is associated with fewer depressive symptoms, (Whitton & Kuryluk, 2012). Interestingly, young women’s emotional well-being was associated with the quality of all of their romantic relationships, but for young men, this was only true when they were highly committed to and invested in the relationship. We have also found evidence to suggest that co-rumination, or “venting” to friends about relationship problems, can exacerbate the negative emotional consequences of relationship dissatisfaction (Whitton & Kuryluk, 2013).
In contrast, our work on the casual sexual relationships of emerging adults has shown that hooking up is associated with negative mental health outcomes, including increased depressive symptoms, anxiety, and hazardous drinking (Weitbrecht, 2017).
We are also interested in learning more about emerging adults’ attitudes and expectations for future, long-term committed relationships, including marriage, and whether they are developing the relationship skills they will need to sustain them (e.g., healthy communication, managing areas of conflict). Contrary to concerns that the rise of the “hook up culture” means that emerging adults no longer value or desire committed relationships or marriage later in life, we found that the vast majority of college students expect to become involved in long-term committed relationships and get married in the future, regardless of their current level of engagement in hooking up (James-Kangal et al., 2018). However, data from focus groups suggest that emerging adults are not practicing healthy communication skills within their uncommitted, short-term, casual relationships (James-Kangal & Whitton, 2019). Neslihan James-Kangal’s dissertation project is examining uncertainty within emerging adults’ hard-to-define, uncommitted partnerships (e.g., “hanging out,” “seeing each other”) and its potential associations with well-being and relationship skills.
Our lab has launched a new line of research on the relationships of emerging adults who identify as sexual/gender minorities. Read more about this work on our FAB400 page.
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