Adolescent premarital sexual activity, cohabitation, and ….doc

Adolescent premarital sexual activity, cohabitation, and attitudes toward marriage Adolescence Roslyn Heights Fall 2001 Authors: Paige D Martin Authors: Don Martin Authors: Maggie Martin Volume: 36 Issue: 143 Pagination: 601-609 ISSN: Subject Terms: Sexual behavior Attitudes Teenagers Marriage Cohabitation Abstract: Societal trends indicate ambivalent attitudes about marriage. Specifically, there is greater acceptance of divorce and nontraditional living arrangements such as cohabitation, as well as acceptance and prevalence of premarital sex, than in the past. Copyright Libra Publishers Incorporated Fall 2001 Full Text: ABSTRACT Societal trends indicate ambivalent attitudes about marriage. Specifically, there is greater acceptance of divorce and nontraditional living arrangements such as cohabitation, as well as acceptance and prevalence of premarital sex, than in the past. The authors examine adolescent attitudes toward marriage and their association with premarital sexual activity and cohabitation. Recommendations for helping adolescents understand the realities of marriage and family life are shared. COHABITATION AND ATTITUDES TOWARD MARRIAGE Cohabitation as an alternative to marriage has increased since the 1960s (Burguiere, Kaplish-Zuber, Segalen, Zonabend, 1994). According to a 1996 U.S. Census report on marital status and living arrangements, the number of unmarried couples living together surged from 523,000 in 1970 to 4 million in 1996. In addition, Horwitz and White (1998) have estimated that nearly a quarter of unmarried people in the United States between the ages of 25 and 34 currently engage in cohabitation. These findings suggest the likelihood that a majority of people will be in an unmarr