Communication During Emerging Adulthood

Looking to the stars: Validating the existence of para-couple relationships among emerging adults.

“…Also related to the samples in question: our scale is validated only among emerging adults, and it is unclear of its utility in other age demographics, such as adolescents, adults, and older adults. These other age demographics imply varying developmental stages (Arnett, 2000(Arnett, , 2015Erikson, 1968;Willoughby et al, 2021), where people might rely on their media couples differently for the type of romantic and sexual information that they need (e.g., experiencing a first love, experiencing divorce, experiencing the death of a partner). This presents numerous opportunities for future research.…”

“…This transitional time period between people's late teens and early 20s is no longer a time for settling and entering into adult roles. Instead, emerging adulthood is a developmental stage characterized by extended exploration, experimentation, and instability within all domains of one's life (i.e., identity, love, and work;Arnett, 2000Arnett, , 2015Willoughby et al, 2021). Of particular importance is the transient and experimental nature of emerging adults' romantic and sexual lives.…”

“…Within the past half century, the social expectations of adulthood have altered. Late entry into marriage and parenthood, as well as continuing job instability and secondary education demands, have prolonged the road to adulthood (Willoughby et al, 2021). This transitional time period between people’s late teens and early 20s is no longer a time for settling and entering into adult roles.…”

“…Emerging adults face this unique challenge of intimacy versus isolation as they further deindividuate from their parents and determine their worth within the world. They often use this transitional period to explore relationships with a variety of romantic partners prior to settling into a long-term commitment, as partially evidenced by increasingly later ages of marriage in the United States (Willoughby et al, 2021). Specifically, they seek to explore “their options, falling in and out of love with different people, and gaining sexual experience” (Arnett, 2000, p. 83).…”

“…This process is further elucidated through the social learning perspective (Bandura, 2001), which states that people acquire behavioral scripts through the observation of media models. Social learning may be of increasing importance for emerging adults (18-29 years old), who are in the midst of great social and individual experimentation (Arnett, 2000(Arnett, , 2015Willoughby et al, 2021) and thus may use mediated information for personal or social gain. One developmental area keenly suited for self and social experimentation is sexual intimacy and romantic love.…”