Social dating goals in late adolescence

Implications for safer sexual activity

Bibliographic Data

ID6201770
AuthorsCatherine A Sanderson (Princeton University), Nancy Cantor
Year1995
Volume68
Issue6
Pages1121-1134
Publication date1995-01-01
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessNo
TypeARTICLE
VenueJournal of Personality and Social Psychology (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0022-3514 • E-ISSN: 1939-1315
PublisherAmerican Psychological Association (APA) (PUBLISHER)
DOI10.1037//0022-3514.68.6.1121
PMID7608858
OpenAlexW2098241678
LanguageEN
Citations received59
References cited5

This research examined 2 age-typical goals that adolescents may pursue in social dating (intimacy goals related to open communication and mutual dependence and identity goals related to self-reliance and self-exploration) and the implications of these different goal sets for responsiveness to educational and daily life situations. Education about safer sexual activity that emphasized interpersonal communication skills was more effective in increasing intentions regarding safer sex for adolescents with predominant intimacy goals in dating, whereas education that focused on technical skills was more effective for those with predominant identity goals. Adolescents were also less likely to engage in risky sexual behavior when they were in dating situations that encouraged goal-relevant activities for ensuring safer sex. Discussion focuses on the dynamics within the broader bidirectional fit between personal goals and situational affordances.

Affordance · Condom · Developmental psychology · Human sexuality · Identity (music · Interpersonal communication · Interpersonal relationship · Personal identity · SAFER · Safer sex · Self-concept · Sexual identity · Situational ethics · Adolescent Health and Behaviors · Adolescent Sexual and Reproductive Health · Attachment and Relationship Dynamics · Evolutionary Psychology and Human Behavior · Psychology · Sexuality, Behavior, and Technology · Social Psychology