The role of romantic attachment security and dating identity exploration in understanding adolescents' sexual attitudes and cumulative sexual risk‐taking
| Autor: | Jennifer L. Kerpelman, Alyssa D. McElwain, Joe F. Pittman |
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| Rok vydání: | 2015 |
| Předmět: |
Male
Adolescent Social Psychology Sexual Behavior Human sexuality Attachment anxiety Anxiety Developmental psychology Risk-Taking Surveys and Questionnaires Developmental and Educational Psychology Humans Interpersonal Relations Path analysis (statistics) Sexual risk Social Identification Courtship Attachment security Sexual relationship Object Attachment Romance Southeastern United States Psychiatry and Mental health Attitude Pediatrics Perinatology and Child Health Normative Female Psychology |
| Zdroj: | Journal of Adolescence. 39:70-81 |
| ISSN: | 1095-9254 0140-1971 |
| DOI: | 10.1016/j.adolescence.2014.12.005 |
| Popis: | This study addressed how two normative developmental factors, attachment and identity, are associated with adolescents' sexual attitudes and sexual risk-taking behavior. The sample consisted of 2029 adolescents (mean age = 16.2 years) living in the Southeast United States. Path analysis was used to test the hypotheses. Higher levels of attachment anxiety predicted more dating identity exploration and less healthy sexual attitudes. Higher levels of attachment avoidance predicted less dating identity exploration and indirectly predicted less healthy sexual attitudes through dating identity exploration. Females with dating or sexual experience showed the weakest associations between the attachment dimensions and dating identity exploration. More dating identity exploration predicted healthier sexual attitudes; this association was strongest for non-virgins. Finally, higher levels of attachment avoidance were associated with higher cumulative sexual risk scores, but only among non-virgin males. Results are interpreted in light of theory and research on attachment, identity exploration, and adolescent sexual relationships. |
| Databáze: | OpenAIRE |
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