Introduction
A 15-year longitudinal study by Boisvert et al. studied how romantic patterns, romantic dispositions and romantic characteristics in early adulthood (ages 16-24) are associated with romantic involvement and turnover in later adulthood (ages 25-30). A sample of 255 individuals (60.8% women) identified all their romantic partners in early adulthood. Data was obtained via a series of questionnaires and analyzed using chi-square analysis for binary variables and three MANOVAs with Tukey’s post-hoc test for continuous variables.
Relationship patterns were categorized into four groups:
- Sporadic — relationships spread out over time that were characterized by a moderate number of different partners and years in a relationship
- Long-term — relationships that were characterized by a moderate number of partners and a high number of years in a relationship
- Frequent — high number of partners and a high number of years in a relationship
- Intense — presented a remarkably high number of partners and a high number of years in a relationship
Results and Discussion
| Relationship Pattern | Avg # of partners | Avg # years in relationship | % in relationship at age 25 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sporadic | 2.9 | 5.3 | 58 |
| Long-term | 3.2 | 4.5 | 48 |
| Frequent | 7.1 | 8.3 | 81 |
| Intense | 11.6 | 8.4 | 83 |
Four main types of Romantic dispositions were identified:
- Avoidance of intimacy
- Anxiety of abandonment
- Jealousy
- General romantic satisfaction
Five main types of Romantic characteristics were identified:
- Cohabitation
- Marital status
- Frequency of conflict
- Duration of relationship
- Quality of relationship
The main findings related to Relationship patterns indicated strong continuity in romantic patterns between early and later adulthood. Individuals that had fewer partners earlier in adulthood (later and sporadic patterns) demonstrated similar patterns later in adulthood. Likewise, those in patterns characterized by frequent partner changes displayed similar trends in later adulthood too. Additionally, it was noted that most (80%) of participants were in a romantic relationship, and that the relationship was long-lasting (M=4.91 years, SD=1.8 years). This suggests that romantic stability generally increases in later adulthood.
As for Relationship dispositions, they found no evidence for any gain in relational skills during later adulthood due to previous relationships. Their data showed that Later and Sporadic groups tend to display higher avoidance of intimacy, lower romantic satisfactoin and lower levels of jealousy by age 30. They hypothesize that these groups are accustomed to lower engagement in relationships and thus experience less jealousy overall. On the contrary, the Frequent and Long-term groups displayed an opposite profile: lower avoidance of intimacy, lower romantic satisfaction, and higher levels of jealousy at age 30. The authors note positive correlations between jealous and anxiety over abandonment and romantic turnover.
The results for Relationship characteristics was limited. The authors could only derive significant effects regarding relationship duration, that being the Long-term group has longer romantic relationships than the sporadic group.
Based on these results, the general quality of relationships in later adulthood do not derive solely from previous romantic relationships—people are able to develop the skills necessary for healthy relationship from platonic ones in life. The increased fraction of individuals in long-lasting relationships by age 30 also suggests that people tend to choose romantic partners that match their needs as they become older.
References
Boisvert, S., Poulin, F., & Dion, J. (2023). Romantic Relationships from Adolescence to Established Adulthood. Emerging Adulthood, 11(4), 216769682311740. https://doi.org/10.1177/21676968231174083
Footnotes
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