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Young singles' contemporary dating scripts

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Abstract

Single women's and men's scripts for a hypothetical and actual first date were investigated for a sample of 135 predominately white undergraduates. Strong scripts were found for both. Hypothetical scripts contained 19 actions for women and men; actual dates consisted of 20 actions for women and 15 for men. Hypothetical scripts constituted a core action sequence that were embellished upon in actual dates. Gender-typed actions were evidenced as strongly for actual dates as hypothetical ones. A proactive male role and a reactive female role were reflected in script content as well as quantitative measures. Actual dates also were characterized by numerous interruptions of the hypothesized sequence.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Psychology, University of Missouri—St. Louis, 63121, St. Louis, MO

    Suzanna Rose

  2. University of Pittsburgh, USA

    Irene Hanson Frieze

Authors
  1. Suzanna Rose
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  2. Irene Hanson Frieze
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Appreciation is extended to Debra Zand for her assistance in data coding.

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Rose, S., Frieze, I.H. Young singles' contemporary dating scripts. Sex Roles 28, 499–509 (1993). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00289677

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00289677

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