Adulthood Flashcards
Tasks of Adulthood
Continued exploration of sexual identity
Identify sexual likes and dislikes
Develop effective communication
Being responsible about sex
Intimacy
The Never-Married Adults
- adults who have never been married
- is increasing
- Many never- married adults are
in romantic relationships - most adults will get married though
Long-Distance Relationships
No differences in relationship
or sexual satisfaction
No differences in rates of infidelity
- portayed in media negatively
- is better when people have faith in the relationhip
- they also tend to idealisize their partners
Singlehood
- Singleism: stigmatizing and
stereotyping of people who are not in a romantic relationship - Committed relationship ideology
- Singles are perceived as possessing
more negative characteristics than
their partnered peers
-singles = less atrctive,less sociable(not true) - Why?
-society ideology
-wedding ring effect = when someone is taken the seem more attractive (specifically men in a relationship)
Are singles really that bad?
- No!
- No differences in personality,
attractiveness, self-esteem,
and social ability
Settling for less…fear
of being single
- Many people fear being single (single and partnered alike)
- Fear of being single is a predictor of settling for less in existing relationships
- This fear also predicts romantic interest in lower quality partners
Cohabitation
- Stage before marriage (for many)
- Common-law: people who lived together for 12months they have the same rights as married couples (except property division)
- Does not cause divorce rather tend to be more educated and less religious (which are people who already get more divorce
- More frequent sex then married couples
- most common in quebec
Marriage
- Why bother?
-signify commitment
-moral values and belifs
-belive children should get merried parents
lgbtq communities
-signify commitment
-legal protection
-political fight for equality
- Sex 2-3x/week (more then singles)
- Masturbation is normal
More sexual satisfaction if:
- sexual rewards > sexual costs
- sexual rewards > sexual costs expected
- Equal reward cost ratios
- Satisfaction with nonsexual relationship
sexual rewards: sexual plesure, intimacy
sexual costs: pain,time
Discrepant Sexual Desire
- Individuals can differ in levels of sexual desire
- Maintain satisfaction
via sexual communal
strength:means having sex with their partner to strenghen the relationship
-people with high sexual communal strengh tend to have an Approach(connect partner,have fun) vs. avoidance(so they stop neging me,get over with
Having Babies &
Careers
- Children affect the sexual
relationship of the couple - Tendency to delay having
children - Two-career homes do not differ
in sexual satisfaction but they differ between satifying job vs not satisfying
Monogamy
- Monogamy = Expectation for romantic and sexual exclusivity in romantic relationship
- Most expect monogamy but only some discuss it
- Even so, infidelity is common
Infidelity
- Sexual: physically arousing contact (e.g.,kissing, sexual touching, oral sex)
-
Romantic: close affection or intimate
connection (e.g., “falling in love”) - Some behaviours are almost always
considered infidelity (ex:having sex with someone else)
Four categories of sexual infidelity:
1.Sexual/explicit behaviours – intercourse, oral sex, touching, kissing
2.Technology/online behaviours - sexting, cybersex,
browsing dating profiles
3.Emotional/affectionate behaviours – sharing secrets, working late, giving/receiving emotional support/dressing to attract
4.Solitary behaviours – viewing porn, masturbation, finding a celebrity attractive
Prevalence
-
hard to find out
1. people dont want to adimit
2. different defenitions for infidality - 1.2%-37.5% in nationally representative U.S. Samples
- 16.5% - 85.5% in community/college samples
very common