Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Associations Between Sexual Behavior, Sexual Attitudes, and Marital Horizons During Emerging Adulthood

  • Published:
Journal of Adult Development Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Using a sample of 1,134 emerging adults, this study explores how the importance place on marriage, ideal marital timing, and criteria for marriage readiness varies by sexual experience. Sexual experience groups were created using cluster analysis techniques that incorporated both sexual behaviors and attitudes. Results from this study indicate that high rates of sexual experience were related to an increased personal belief that marriage is an important goal and a belief that being single holds more advantages over being married. Emerging adults with high rates of sexual experience were also more likely to believe that sexual experience and cohabitation are important criteria for marriage readiness.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • Amato, P. R., & Rogers, S. J. (1999). Do attitudes toward divorce affect marital quality? Journal of Family Issues, 20, 69–86.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Armour, S., & Haynie, D. L. (2007). Adolescent sexual debut and later delinquency. Journal of Youth and Adolescence, 36, 141–152.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Arnett, J. J. (1992). Reckless behavior in adolescence: A developmental perspective. Developmental Review, 12, 339–373.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Arnett, J. J. (1997). Young people’s conceptions of the transition to adulthood. Youth & Society, 29, 3–23.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Arnett, J. J. (2000). Emerging adulthood: A theory of development from the late teens through the twenties. American Psychologist, 55, 469–480.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Brown, S. L. (2000). Union transitions among cohabitors: The significance of relationship assessments and expectations. Journal of Marriage and the Family, 62, 833–846.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Busby, D. M., Carroll, J. S., & Willoughby, B. J. (2010). Compatibility or restraint?: The effects of sexual timing on marriage relationships. Journal of Family Psychology, 24, 766–774.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Carpenter, L. M. (2001). The ambiguity of “having sex”: The subjective experience of virginity loss in the United States. The Journal of Sex Research, 38(2), 127–139.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Carroll, J. S., Badger, S., Willoughby, B. J., Nelson, L. J., Madsen, S., & Barry, C. M. (2009). Ready or not? Criteria for marriage readiness among emerging adults. Journal of Adolescent Research, 24, 349–375.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Carroll, J. S., Willoughby, B., Badger, S., Nelson, L. J., Barry, C. M., & Madsen, S. (2007). So close, yet so far away: The impact of varying marital horizons on emerging adulthood. Journal of Adolescence Research, 22(3), 219–247.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Census Bureau, U. S. (2005). Statistical abstract of the United States, 2005. Washington, DC: Author.

    Google Scholar 

  • Christopher, F. S., & Sprecher, S. (2000). Sexuality in marriage, dating, and other relationships: A decade review. Journal of Marriage and the Family, 62, 999–1017.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • DeMaris, A., & Rao, V. (1992). Premarital cohabitation and subsequent marital stability in the United States: A reassessment. Journal of Marriage and the Family, 54(1), 178–190.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Donnelly, D., Burgess, E., Anderson, S., Davis, R., & Dillard, J. (2001). Involuntary celibacy: A life course analysis. The Journal of Sex Research, 38(2), 159–169.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Dush, C. M., Cohan, C. L., & Amato, P. R. (2003). The relationship between cohabitation and marital quality and stability: Change across cohorts? Journal of Marriage and Family, 65, 539–549.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Garcia, L. T., & Markey, C. (2007). Matching in sexual experience for married, cohabitating, and dating couples. Journal of Sex Research, 44(3), 250–255.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Goodson, P., Suther, S., Pruitt, B. E., & Wilson, K. (2003). Defining abstinence: Views of directors, instructors, and participants in abstinence-only-until-marriage programs in Texas. Journal of School Health, 73(3), 91–96.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Grello, C. M., Welsh, D. P., & Harper, M. S. (2006). No strings attached: The nature of casual sex in college students. The Journal of Sex Research, 43, 255–267.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Haffner, D. W. (1997). What’s wrong with abstinence-only sexuality education programs? SIECUS Report, 25, 9–13.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Heaton, T. B. (2002). Factors contributing to the increasing marital stability in the United States. Journal of Family Issues, 23(3), 392–409.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hyde, J. S., DeLamater, J. D., Plant, E. A., & Byrd, J. M. (1996). Sexuality during pregnancy and the year postpartum. The Journal of Sex Research, 33, 143–151.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Johnson, P. B., & Richter, L. (2004). Research note: What if we’re wrong? Some possible implications of systematic distortions in adolescents’ self-reports of sensitive behaviors. Journal of Drug Issues, 34(4), 951–970.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kaestle, C. E., & Halpern, C. T. (2007). What’s love got to do with it? Sexual behaviors of opposite-sex couples through emerging adulthood. Perspectives on Sexual and Reproductive Health, 39(3), 134–140.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Kahn, J. R., & London, K. A. (1991). Premarital sex and the risk of divorce. Journal of Marriage and the Family, 53(4), 845–855.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kline, G. H., Stanley, S. M., Markman, H. J., Olmos-Gallo, P. A., Peters, M. S., Whitton, S. W., et al. (2004). Timing is everything: Pre-engagement cohabitation and increased risk for poor marital outcomes. Journal of Family Psychology, 18(2), 311–318.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Kudova, P., Rezankova, H., Husek, D., & Snasel, V. (2006). Categorical data clustering using statistical methods and neural networks. In Proceedings of the spring young researcher’s colloquium on database and information systems, Moscow.

  • Larson, J. H., & Holman, T. B. (1994). Premarital predictors of marital quality and stability. Family Relations, 43, 228–237.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Manning, W. D., Longmore, M. A., & Giordano, P. C. (2007). The changing institution of marriage: Adolescents’ expectations to cohabit and to marry. Journal of Marriage and Family, 69, 559–575.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Meier, A. M. (2007). Adolescent first sex and subsequent mental health. The American Journal of Sociology, 112(6), 1811–1847.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Mosko, J. E., & Pistole, M. C. (2010). Attachment and religiousness: Contributions to young adult marital attitudes and readiness. The Family Journal, 18, 127–135.

    Google Scholar 

  • Netting, N. S., & Burnett, M. L. (2004). Twenty years of student sexual behavior: Subcultural adaptations to a changing health environment. Adolescence, 39, 19–38.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Paik, A. (2011). Adolescent sexuality and the risk of marital dissolution. Journal of Marriage and Family, 73, 472–485.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Paul, E. L., McManus, B., & Hayes, A. (2000). “Hookups”: Characteristics and correlates of college students’ spontaneous and anonymous sexual experiences. The Journal of Sex Research, 37(1), 76–88.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Raley, R., Crissey, S., & Muller, C. (2007). Of sex and romance: Late adolescent relationships and young adult union formation. Journal of Marriage and Family, 69, 1210–1226.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Sassler, S., & Schoen, R. (1999). The effect of attitudes and economic activity of marriage. Journal of Marriage and the Family, 61, 147–159.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Scholly, K., Katz, A. R., Gascoigne, J., & Holck, P. S. (2005). Using social norms theory to explain perceptions and sexual health behaviors of undergraduate college students: An exploratory study. Journal of American College Health, 53, 159–166.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Smock, P. J. (2000). Cohabitation in the United States: An appraisal of research themes, findings, and implications. Annual Review of Sociology, 26, 1–20.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Spencer, L. H. (2007). Using cluster analysis to explore survey data. Nurse Researcher, 15(1), 37–54.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Teachman, J. (2003). Premarital sex, premarital cohabitation, and the risk of subsequent marital dissolution among women. Journal of Marriage and Family, 65, 444–455.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Treas, J. (2002). How cohorts, education, and ideology shaped a new sexual revolution on American attitudes toward nonmarital sex, 1972–1998. Sociological Perspectives, 45, 267–283.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Waller, M. R., & McLanahan, S. S. (2005). “His” and “her” marriage expectations: Determinants and consequences. Journal of Marriage and Family, 67, 53–67.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Wells, B. E., & Twenge, J. M. (2005). Changes in young people’s sexual behavior and attitudes, 1943–1999: A cross-temporal meta-analysis. Review of General Psychology, 9(3), 249–261.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • William T. Grant Foundation Commission on Work, Family, Citizenship. (1988). The forgotten half: Non-college bound youth in America. Washington, DC: William T. Grand Foundation.

    Google Scholar 

  • Willoughby, B. J., & Carroll, J. S. (2010). Sexual experience and couple formation attitudes among emerging adults. Journal of Adult Development, 17, 1–11.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Willoughby, B. J., & Dworkin, J. (2009). The relationships between emerging adults’ expressed desire to marry and frequency of participation in risk behaviors. Youth & Society, 40, 426–450.

    Article  Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Family Life, Brigham Young University, 2081 JFSB, BYU, Provo, UT, 84602, USA

    Brian J. Willoughby

Authors
  1. Brian J. Willoughby
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Brian J. Willoughby.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Willoughby, B.J. Associations Between Sexual Behavior, Sexual Attitudes, and Marital Horizons During Emerging Adulthood. J Adult Dev 19, 100–110 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10804-011-9138-7

Download citation

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10804-011-9138-7

Keywords

Search

Navigation