Momentary sexual enjoyment: The dyadic roles of relationship satisfaction and contraception among mixed-gender dating couples

2019 ◽  
Vol 37 (3) ◽  
pp. 932-941
Author(s):  
Shari M. Blumenstock ◽  
Lauren M. Papp
Keyword(s):  
Young Adult ◽  
Romantic Relationships ◽  
Relationship Satisfaction ◽  
Condom Use ◽  
Sexual Experiences ◽  
Relationship Length ◽  
Contraception Use ◽  
Dating Couples ◽  
Sexual Enjoyment ◽  
Mixed Gender

Enjoyable sexual experiences with a romantic partner are a vital element of healthy lives and happy relationships, yet positive experiences of sex, and associated interpersonal and contraceptive factors, have not been extensively studied at the momentary level. In particular, little is known about how relationship quality and contraception use simultaneously relate to both women’s and men’s momentary sexual experiences within young adult romantic relationships. Using electronic diary reports collected three times per day for 10 days ( n = 293 reports of sexual activity), this study assessed own and partner relationship satisfaction and contraception (hormonal and condom) use as predictors of momentary sexual enjoyment in 43 mixed-gender young adult dating couples. Dyadic multilevel model results indicated that women’s relationship satisfaction positively predicted sexual enjoyment for both women and men, whereas men’s relationship satisfaction was not associated with own or partner’s sexual enjoyment. Women’s hormonal contraception use was associated with lower momentary sexual enjoyment for women and their male partners. Condom use was infrequent and not associated with sexual enjoyment, contrary to our (and many young adults') expectations. All analyses controlled for relationship length and sexual frequency. Findings underscore the simultaneous importance of hormonal and relational factors in sexual outcomes within young adult romantic relationships, as well as the complex and interdependent nature of partnered sexual experiences.

Shifting priorities

2017 ◽  
Vol 35 (6) ◽  
pp. 793-810 ◽  
Author(s):  
Judith Gere ◽  
Emily A. Impett
Keyword(s):  
Romantic Relationships ◽  
Relationship Satisfaction ◽  
Multilevel Models ◽  
Romantic Partners ◽  
Relationship Commitment ◽  
Goal Conflict ◽  
Goal Adjustment ◽  
Initial Session ◽  
Dating Couples ◽  
Over Time

We investigated whether partners in newly developing romantic relationships adjust their goals when they experience conflict with the goals of their partner, and the consequences of goal conflict and goal adjustment. Fifty-nine newly dating couples ( N = 118) reported on their goals at an initial session and again 3 months later. Multilevel models indicated that when people reported higher conflict between a goal and their partner’s goals, they were more likely to stop pursuing as well as to devalue the importance of that particular goal over time. Furthermore, goal devaluing was associated with increases in relationship commitment over time but decreases in women’s relationship satisfaction when their partners devalued conflicting goals. Overall levels of goal conflict were associated with marginal decreases in relationship satisfaction. These results indicate that romantic partners try to adjust their goals to reduce goal conflict even in developing relationships, and that these adjustments have consequences for relationship satisfaction and commitment.

The association between romantic competence and couple support behaviors in emerging adult couples

2020 ◽  
pp. 026540752098053
Author(s):  
Jiaqi Zhou ◽  
Vickie Bhatia ◽  
Tamara Luginbuehl ◽  
Joanne Davila
Keyword(s):  
Relationship Satisfaction ◽  
Attachment Security ◽  
Emerging Adult ◽  
Relationship Functioning ◽  
Relationship Education ◽  
Relationship Length ◽  
Romantic Competence ◽  
Security Relationship ◽  
Novel Target ◽  
Mixed Gender

This study examined the association between romantic competence and observed couple social support behaviors in a sample of 89 emerging adult mixed-gender couples ( M age = 20.65 for men, 20.16 for women). Across analyses, findings generally indicated that higher romantic competence was associated with both seeking and providing support in a more positive and less negative manner, even when controlling for attachment security, relationship satisfaction, and relationship length. The findings extend our understanding of how romantic competence affects dyadic processes, and identifies romantic competence as a novel target underlying the ability to effectively seek and provide support. Clinical implications for relationship education programs as well as psychotherapy that may be focused on improving relationship functioning is discussed.

scholarly journals The Relationship Between Phubbing and Romantic Relationship Satisfaction: A Literature Review

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Masita Utami ◽  
Muhammad Khairul Anam ◽  
Rakhmaditya Dewi Noorrizki
Keyword(s):  
Literature Review ◽  
Romantic Relationships ◽  
Relationship Satisfaction ◽  
Romantic Relationship ◽  
Couples Research ◽  
The World ◽  
Dating Couples ◽  
Romantic Relationship Satisfaction ◽  
The Relationship

This study examined the relationship between phubbing and romantic relationship satisfaction in dating couples. Research on the topic of discussing the relationship between phubbing and romantic relationship satisfaction is rarely conducted in Indonesia. Research carried out abroad focuses on the satisfaction of romantic relationships in marriage couples, not dating couples. Therefore, a research that discusses phubbing and romantic relationship satisfaction in dating couples is needed. Two variables are still considered new in the world of psychology. This study aims to determine the relationship between phubbing and romantic relationship satisfaction in dating couples. The method used in this study is a literature review in which presented various studies. In this research, presented several studies related to related aspects, namely phubbing and satisfaction romantic relationship. It was concluded that there was a relationship between phubbing and romantic relationship satisfaction among dating couples. In addition, we presented several studies related to the topic and related variables within the aspects. Further research is needed in order to know what variables are influenced and influenced. Keywords: phubbing, romantic relationship, relationship satisfaction

scholarly journals Romantic Relationship Quality in the Digital Age: A Study with Young Adults

2017 ◽  
Vol 20 ◽  
Author(s):  
Virginia Sánchez ◽  
Noelia Muñoz-Fernández ◽  
Rosario Ortega-Ruiz
Keyword(s):  
Romantic Relationships ◽  
Relationship Satisfaction ◽  
Romantic Relationship ◽  
Communication Strategies ◽  
Self Report ◽  
Relationship Length ◽  
Level Of Satisfaction ◽  
Quality Dimensions ◽  
Romantic Relationship Satisfaction ◽  
The Impact

AbstractRecent studies suggest that the online and offline behaviors young people display in romantic relationships are closely related. However, the differential effects of the dimensions of couple quality in the online context have not yet been explored in depth. The aim of this study was to explore online couple quality in young-adult relationships, and its association with romantic relationship satisfaction, also looking at effects of gender, age, and length of the relationship. 431 university students currently in a romantic relationship (68.2% females; mean age = 21.57) participated in this study. They completed different self-report measures to tap the online quality of their romantic relationships (online intimacy, control, jealousy, intrusiveness, cyberdating practices, and communication strategies) and level of satisfaction with those relationships. Results showed that participants more often reported online intimacy (Mmen = 2.49; Mwomen = 2.38) than the negative scales of online quality (mean ranged from .43 to 1.50), and all the online quality scales decreased with age (correlations ranged from –.12 to –.30) and relationship length (correlations ranged from –.02 to –.20). Linear regression analyses indicated that online intimacy (b = .32, p = .001) and intrusiveness (b = .11, p = .035) were positively related to relationship satisfaction, while cyberdating practices (b = –.20, p = .001) and communication strategies (b = –.34, p = .001) were negatively correlated with relationship satisfaction. Moreover, gender and relationship length moderated some of these associations. Results indicate that while online quality and relationship satisfaction are related, the impact of different online quality dimensions on relationship satisfaction differs depending on a participant’s sex, age, and relationship length.

scholarly journals The Association of Attachment Anxiety and Avoidance With Emotional Dating Abuse Perpetration Using Multimethod, Dyadic Data

2016 ◽  
Vol 31 (4) ◽  
pp. 622-637 ◽  
Author(s):  
Elizabeth A. Goncy ◽  
Manfred H. M. van Dulmen
Keyword(s):  
Young Adult ◽  
Romantic Relationships ◽  
Survey Data ◽  
Emotional Abuse ◽  
Attachment Anxiety ◽  
Self Report ◽  
Dyadic Data ◽  
Dating Abuse ◽  
Dating Couples ◽  
The Relationship

This study examined the relationship between emotional dating abuse perpetration and attachment anxiety and avoidance using multimethod, multi-informant dyadic data. Data were derived from a sample of young adult heterosexual dating couples (N = 113 couples). We measured attachment through self-report survey data and emotional dating abuse through self-report surveys, partner-report surveys, and ratings by independent observers of a videotaped couple interaction. Both female and male anxiety were related to female emotional abuse across each method. Male anxiety was related to male emotional abuse in survey data, but female anxiety was related to male emotional abuse in observed data. Neither male nor female avoidance was related to emotional abuse. Dating abuse prevention should focus on attachment anxiety factors (e.g., jealousy, anger) to reduce emotional abuse in young adult romantic relationships.

scholarly journals Optimism in close relationships: How seeing things in a positive light makes them so

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sanjay Srivastava ◽  
Kelly M. McGonigal ◽  
Jane M. Richards ◽  
Emily A. Butler ◽  
James Gross
Keyword(s):  
Romantic Relationships ◽  
Relationship Satisfaction ◽  
Romantic Partners ◽  
Perceived Support ◽  
Relationship Status ◽  
Positive Outcomes ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Dating Couples ◽  
Cognitive Disposition

Does expecting positive outcomes--especially in important life domains such as relationships--make these positive outcomes more likely? In a longitudinal study of dating couples, the authors tested whether optimists (who have a cognitive disposition to expect positive outcomes) and their romantic partners are more satisfied in their relationships, and if so, whether this is due to optimists perceiving greater support from their partners. In cross-sectional analyses, both optimists and their partners indicated greater relationship satisfaction, an effect that was mediated by optimists' greater perceived support. When the couples engaged in a conflict conversation, optimists and their partners saw each other as engaging more constructively during the conflict, which in turn led both partners to feel that the conflict was better resolved 1 week later. In a 1-year follow-up, men's optimism predicted relationship status. Effects of optimism were mediated by the optimists' perceived support, which appears to promote a variety of beneficial processes in romantic relationships.

Dual-Method Contraception Use Among Young Women Pre- and Post-ACA Implementation

2020 ◽  
Vol 21 (3) ◽  
pp. 140-150 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tiffany M. Montgomery ◽  
Alisa J. Stephens-Shields ◽  
Marilyn M. Schapira ◽  
Aletha Y. Akers
Keyword(s):  
Black Women ◽  
Young Adult ◽  
Condom Use ◽  
Odds Ratio ◽  
Adolescent And Young Adult ◽  
Dual Method ◽  
Consistent Condom ◽  
Adult Women ◽  
Young Adult Women ◽  
Contraception Use

The 2012 implementation of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ACA) contraceptive coverage mandate removed financial barriers to contraception access for many insured women. Since that time, increases in sexually transmitted disease (STD) rates have been noted, particularly among Black adolescent and young adult women aged 15 to 24 years. It is unclear whether changes in dual-method contraception use (simultaneous use of nonbarrier contraceptive methods and condoms) are associated with the increase in STD rates. A repeated cross-sectional analysis was conducted among adolescent and young adult women to compare pre-ACA data from the 2006–2010 cohort and post-ACA data from the 2013–2015 cohort of the National Survey for Family Growth. A significant decrease in short-acting reversible contraception use (SARC; 78.2% vs. 67.5%; p <  .01) and a significant increase in long-acting reversible contraception use (LARC; 8.9% vs. 21.8%; p <  .01) were found, but no significant change in dual-method contraception use was found among pre- versus post-ACA SARC users and SARC nonusers (odds ratio [OR]: 1.88, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.64–5.46, p =  .25), LARC users and LARC nonusers (adjusted odds ratio [AOR]: 1.62, 95% CI: 0.42–6.18, p =  .48), or White and Black women (AOR: 1.45, 95% CI: 0.66–3.18, p =  .35). There was no direct association between changes in contraception use and decreased condom use and therefore no indirect association between changes in contraception use and increased STD rates. Health care providers should continue promoting consistent condom use. Additional research is needed to understand recent increases in STD rates among Black women in the post-ACA era.

scholarly journals Ambivalent sexism and relationship adjustment among young adult couples: An actor-partner interdependence model

2021 ◽  
pp. 026540752110055
Author(s):  
Mylène Lachance-Grzela ◽  
Bingyu Liu ◽  
Andréanne Charbonneau ◽  
Geneviève Bouchard
Keyword(s):  
Gender Differences ◽  
Young Adult ◽  
Romantic Relationships ◽  
Romantic Relationship ◽  
Ambivalent Sexism ◽  
Benevolent Sexism ◽  
Hostile Sexism ◽  
Relationship Adjustment ◽  
Actor Partner Interdependence Model

This study examined the associations between ambivalent sexism (i.e., hostile and benevolent sexism) and relationship adjustment in young adult couples by testing an actor-partner interdependence model. The sample was composed of 219 cohabiting heterosexual Canadian couples. The findings suggest that ambivalent sexism plays a role in young adults’ perceptions of the quality of their romantic relationship, but gender differences exist. Women and men who more strongly endorsed hostile sexism tended to report lower relationship adjustment. Women’s hostile sexism was also negatively related to their partners’ relationship adjustment, whereas their benevolent sexism was positively related to their own and their partners’ relationship adjustment. For their part, men’s ambivalent sexism was unrelated to their partners’ relationship adjustment and their benevolent sexism was also unrelated to their own relationship adjustment. The results are discussed in light of the insidious consequences that can accompany ambivalent sexism. Even though hostile sexism functions to protect men’s societal advantages, it comes with costs to their romantic relationships. In contrast, despite the rewards benevolent sexism can bring on the relational level, its endorsement may hinder the attainment of gender equality by encouraging women to invest in their relationship at the expense of independent achievements.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document