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We change after we start dating, study suggests

Results of 5-year longitudinal study on adolescents and romance

Date:
December 2, 2015
Source:
Florida Atlantic University
Summary:
Researchers put to test the hypothesis that adolescents become less similar to their friends and more similar to romantic partners after they start a new romantic relationship. This first study to use longitudinal data is a stark reminder how the peer social world changes during adolescence, and same-sex friends become less important and romantic affiliations become more important.
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A new study published in Developmental Psychology put to test the hypothesis that adolescents become less similar to their friends and more similar to romantic partners after they start a new romantic relationship. Results of the study showed that adolescents who dated were more similar to dating partners than to friends on measures of alcohol abuse. Non-daters who started dating changed from being more similar to friends to being more similar to romantic partners. This is the first study to use longitudinal data to demonstrate changes in friend similarity that follow from the initiation of a romantic relationship.

"The results confirm what most friends complain about -- romantic partners are a distraction from friendships," said Brett Laursen, Ph.D., one of the authors and a professor and graduate studies coordinator in the Department of Psychology at Florida Atlantic University. "It also is a stark reminder how the peer social world changes during adolescence. Same-sex friends become less important and romantic affiliations become more important."

Similarity is the hallmark of adolescent friendships and not coincidently, most single adolescents report friends to be among their most important relationships. However, the start of a new romantic relationship alters the balance of close relationships. As romantic relationships surpass friendships in terms of importance, adolescents are inclined to change to become more similar to their romantic partners, even if it means that differences arise with friends.

"Much attention is given to the role that friends play in the acquisition and reinforcement of health-risk behaviors," said Laursen. "Adolescents rarely drink alone, so concerns over peer pressure to experiment with and abuse alcohol are well placed. Often overlooked, however, is the fact that initial involvement in romantic relationships tend to coincide with initial exposure to alcohol."

In the first part of the study, participants (662 girls, 574 boys) ranging in age from 12 to 19 years, nominated friends and romantic partners, and completed a measure of alcohol abuse. Friends with romantic partners were less similar on rates of alcohol abuse than friends without romantic partners, especially if they were older and less well-liked by classmates.

The second part of the study focused on a subsample (266 boys, 374 girls) of adolescents who reported friendships that were stable across two consecutive years. At the outset, neither friend was involved in a romantic relationship. Using this longitudinal subsample made it possible to measure changes in friend similarity for those who did and did not begin a romantic relationship.

Similarity between friend reports of alcohol abuse declined after one or both of the adolescents became involved in a romantic relationship, to the point where they became more similar to their romantic partners than to their friends.

Levels of alcohol consumption did not differ for adolescents with romantic partners and adolescents without.

"The findings suggest that participation in a romantic relationship does not elevate the risk of alcohol abuse beyond that involved in participation in friendships," said Laursen. "Instead, it is the source of the risk that changes. Friends no longer shape drinking habits the way they used to. Romantic partners now dictate terms. Your friends were right: You aren't the same person you were when you were single."


Story Source:

Materials provided by Florida Atlantic University. Note: Content may be edited for style and length.


Journal Reference:

  1. Dawn DeLay, Brett Laursen, William M. Bukowski, Margaret Kerr, Håkan Stattin. Adolescent Friend Similarity on Alcohol Abuse as a Function of Participation in Romantic Relationships: Sometimes a New Love Comes Between Old Friends.. Developmental Psychology, 2015; DOI: 10.1037/a0039882

Cite This Page:

Florida Atlantic University. "We change after we start dating, study suggests." ScienceDaily. ScienceDaily, 2 December 2015. <www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2015/12/151202095115.htm>.
Florida Atlantic University. (2015, December 2). We change after we start dating, study suggests. ScienceDaily. Retrieved March 28, 2024 from www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2015/12/151202095115.htm
Florida Atlantic University. "We change after we start dating, study suggests." ScienceDaily. www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2015/12/151202095115.htm (accessed March 28, 2024).

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