The Progression of Sexual Relationships

• DOI: http://doi.org/10.1111/jomf.12289
• Author: Sharon Sassler,Jennifer A. Holland,Katherine Michelmore
• Date: 01 June 2016
• Published date: 01 June 2016

S S Cornell University

K M University of Michigan∗

J A. H University of Southampton∗∗

The Progression of Sexual Relationships

The authors examine factors associated with

the advancement or dissolution of newly formed

sexual relationships. Data from the 2006–2010

National Survey of Family Growth (NSFG) was

used to examine women and men aged 18–39 (n

=2,774) whose most recent sexual relationship

began within the 12 months before their inter-

view. Results indicate that newly formed sexual

relationships are often transitory. By 12 months,

only 23% of respondents remained in nonresi-

dential sexual relationships, another 27% were

cohabiting with that partner,and half had ended

their relationships. Sexual relationships formed

before age 25 are signicantly more likely to

break up than to transition into cohabitation.

Indicators of social class disadvantage, such as

living with a stepparent, expedited cohabitation,

whereas measures of advantage, such as hav-

ing a college-educated mother, deterred transi-

tions into shared living. Racial differences also

emerge: Blacks were less likely than Whites to

transition rapidly into shared living.

Sexual involvement has become normative as

part of the courtship process (Finer, 2007).

A sizable body of research explores factors

Policy Analysis and Management, Cornell University,134

MVR Hall, Ithaca, NY 14850 (ss589@cornell.edu).

∗Gerald R. Ford School of Public Policy,University of

Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI 48109.

∗∗Department of Social Statistics & Demography,

University of Southampton, Southampton, SO17 1BJ, UK.

KeyWords:cohabitation, relationship processes, sexual rela-

tionships, social class, transitions.

associated with adult sexual behavior, including

age at sexual debut (Johnson & Tyler, 2007;

Pearson, Muller, & Frisco, 2006), number of

sexual partners and sexual frequency (Smith,

1991), and contraceptive use (Sprecher, 2013).

To date, however, few empirical studies have

examined how sexual relationships progress,

maintain, or dissolve over time in the United

States. Some researchers have suggested that

young adults are sliding into cohabitation or

marriage without adequate time for dedication

and commitment to develop (Glenn, 2002;

Stanley, Rhoades, & Markman, 2006). Others

have recommended that adults slow down the

pace at which they enter into new attachments,

given research showing that rapid involvement

may negatively inuence relationship quality,

reduce dedication, or be adversely associated

with parenting abilities and marital stability

(Cherlin, 2009; Glenn, 2002; Stanley et al.,

2006). Notwithstanding these suggestions, we

know of no studies that provide national esti-

mates of the relationship trajectories of sexually

involved Americans or how the progression

of sexual relationships varies by age, race and

ethnicity, or social class.

Previous research using nonrepresentative

samples suggested that the transition from sexual

involvement to cohabitation often occurs rapidly

(Sassler, 2004; Sassler & Miller,2011) and unin-

tentionally (Manning & Smock, 2005; Stanley

et al., 2006), particularly among younger adults.

The qualitative literature on dating also hints

at the importance of social class in shaping the

tempo to shared living. In their class-diverse

study of 122 cohabitors, Sassler and Miller

(2011) found that while more than half of

Journal of Marriage and Family 78 (June 2016): 587–597 587

DOI:10.1111/jomf.12289