Sex,love,andreligioninadolescentromanticcouples.pptVIP

Sex, love, and religion in adolescent romantic couples. Catherine M. Grello University of Tennessee Research on Adolescent Sexual Behaviors Relies primarily on individual self-report. Most adolescents transition to intercourse by the end of HS. Most transition within the context of a romance. Religiosity and Adolescent Sexual Behavior Delayed transition. Less frequent sexual behaviors. Decrease in contraception use. Love Styles Eros Passionate love, high on intimacy, intense. Ludus Game playing love, low intimacy, unreciprocated. Storge Friendship love, stable and compassionate. Mania Obsessive, jealous, emotional. Pragma Practical, “shopping list” approach, compatibility is important. Agape Altruistic, selfless love. Purpose Examine the complex relationship among of couple members’ religiosity, approach/attitudes towards love, and the frequency of sexual behaviors in their romantic relationships. The data for this project comes from The Study of Tennessee Adolescent Romantic Relationships (STARR), funded by NICHD. Sample 211 adolescent dating couples1 102 couples between 14-17 yrs old Mode: females = 15 males = 16 109 couples between 17-21 yrs old Mode: females = 18 males = 18 Couples dating a minimum of 4 weeks (range: 4 weeks – 260 weeks; mean: 44 weeks) 1Couples recruited from a previous study of 2201 high school students from 17 different high schools representing geographic (rural, urban, suburban) and economic diversity Measures Affectionate Sexual Behaviors Number of times in previous month couple hugged, kissed, and held hands (alpha = .85). Genital Sexual Behaviors Number of times in previous month couple engaged in fondling without clothes, oral sex and intercourse (alpha = .82). Measures Religiosity attendance of religious services, importance of religion, involvement, and restriction of behavior by religion. Love Styles (Hendrick Hendrick, 1986) 36 items designed to measure attitudes towards love (alphas: .56 to .85). Partner Differenc