A Decade Review of Sex and Partnering in Adolescence and Young Adulthood

Abstract

The formation and development of romantic relationships continues to be an important area of study among adolescent and young adult populations. Although many adolescents and young adults report having committed romantic relationship experiences, which may or may not include sexual activity, research has grown during the past decade to study a variety of sexual experiences and relationship types. Consistent with identity formation and exploration and the opportunity for experimentation, adolescents and young adults also engage in a variety of casual sexual relationships and experiences. The past decade saw a dramatic growth in the study of casual sex and in particular hooking‐up experiences. Furthermore, scholars have begun to examine more fully young adults' attitudes toward and willingness to engage in consensually nonmonogamous relationships; however, little research has examined actual involvement in consensually nonmonogamous relationships among those in young adulthood. As with previous decade reviews, ongoing attention regarding how adolescent experiences serve to inform relationships and sex during the period of young adulthood is warranted. Directions for future research are identified and discussed.

Adolescents and sexual risk‐taking: The interplay of constraining relationship beliefs, healthy sex attitudes, and romantic attachment insecurity

“…Such behavior may still be means to avoid intimacy with a partner, as pregnancy might require an adolescent to commit reluctantly to a partner. Overall, the collective findings reinforce the assumption that adolescents higher in attachment avoidance are less likely to develop emotional intimacy with a sexual partner and may be fearful of commitment (Bartholomew, 1990;Bartholomew & Horowitz, 1991;Olmstead, 2020;Schachner & Shaver, 2004), and are more likely to have sex motivated by losing their virginity rather than intimacy (Tracy et al, 2003).…”

“…Additionally, the community sample of the present study was collected in a conservative southern state, limiting the kinds of sexual activity assessed. It will be important to examine whether the identified risk and protective factors of the present study influence adolescents’ engagement in other risky sexual activities associated with oral and anal sex, and it will be important to include additional predictors found to be associated with adolescent sexual risk‐taking such as alcohol/substance use and quality of relationships with parents (American College of Health Association, 2009; Hutchinson et al, 2003; Olmstead, 2020).…”

“…Scholarly efforts have begun to identify factors that exacerbate or mitigate adolescents' risky sexual activity; however, much of the research has focused on young adult (college) populations (Olmstead, 2020). Past research indicates that adolescents' romantic attachment insecurity, as well as their attitudes about sex and beliefs about relationships may be particularly important for understanding their risky sexual engagement (Gebhardt et al, 2003; McElwain et al, 2015; Mitchell et al, 2004; Tracy et al, 2003).…”

Desire, Familiarity, and Engagement in Polyamory: Results From a National Sample of Single Adults in the United States

“…The belief that monogamy is optimal is also an (implicit) assumption appears in many contemporary social science theories of intimacy, such as attachment theory and the investment model of relationships (e.g., Moors et al, 2015 ; Conley et al, 2017 ). One area ripe for future research is expanding relationship concepts and frameworks to include consensually non-monogamous relationship and family arrangements (see Olmstead, 2020 , for a review focused on adolescence).…”

Introduction to special issue on the parenting relationship

“…What scarce scholarly literature there is exploring minoritized relational orientation identities in youth is either non-existent in terms of polyamory (e.g., swinging, consensual non-monogamy; Olmstead, 2020) or is focused on a specific formpolygamy. Even when the intersection of polygamy and youth/adolescence occurs in the scholarly literature, it is not focused on as a relational orientation and related identity development of the youth themselves, but rather, is focused on the effects of polygamous marriage/s on the mental, relational, and academic health of the youth/adolescence (Blumer et al, 2014a;Hamdan et al, 2009;Twist et al, 2015).…”