Romantic relationships and loneliness in a group of South African postgraduate students
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 22336072 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Elmien Lesch (0000-0002-8083-1925, Stellenbosch University, corresponding author), Rozanne Casper (Stellenbosch University), Alberta S J Van Der Watt (0000-0002-9005-8948, Stellenbosch University) |
| Year | 2016 |
| Volume | 47 |
| Issue | 4 |
| Pages | 22-39 |
| Publication date | 2016-10-01 |
| Open Access | No |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Society in Transition (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 1028-9852 • E-ISSN: 2072-1978 |
| Publisher | Informa UK Limited (PUBLISHER • GB) |
| DOI | 10.1080/21528586.2016.1182442 |
| OpenAlex | W2561170757 |
| Language | EN |
| Citations received | 2 |
| References cited | 41 |
According to psychological developmental theory, the formation of a committed romantic relationship is a critical psychosocial development task for young adults. They are also socialised to believe that such a relationship is the ultimate pathway to love and psychological intimacy and they may therefore experience general and romantic loneliness in its absence. However, people in romantic relationships can also experience romantic loneliness, while single people may be romantically alone but not necessarily romantically lonely. We could not locate any South African research on young adults and romantic loneliness and therefore conducted an exploratory study on this phenomenon in a South African postgraduate sample. A total of 622 postgraduate students completed a bio-demographic questionnaire and the Social and Emotional Loneliness Scale for Adults online. A general low level of loneliness was found overall, but the participants were found to be lonelier in the romantic domain than in the social or family loneliness domains. In addition, single participants were found to have higher levels of romantic and general loneliness than participants in committed relationships. Therefore, the results suggested that relationship status has a significant influence on romantic and general loneliness and confirmed the hegemony of romantic relationships in young adults’ lives
Loneliness · Physics · Psychoanalysis · Romance · Sociology · Attachment and Relationship Dynamics · Child and Adolescent Psychosocial and Emotional Development · Family Support in Illness · Gender Studies · Psychology · Social Psychology
Social and emotional loneliness
“You're Going Out with Who ?”
Gender and sexuality
Target Article
The development and initial validation of the Social and Emotional Loneliness Scale for Adults (Selsa)
Loneliness and Social Isolation
Generations and Globalization
Romantic relationships and the physical and mental health of college students
Couple Culture and the Production of Singleness
Loneliness and life satisfaction among three cultural groups
Older Persons' Experiences of Loneliness
Women's Identity in a Country in Rapid Social Change
Social Skills, Life Satisfaction, and Loneliness in Turkish University Students
An Investigation of Social Skills and Loneliness Levels of University Students With Respect to Their Attachment Styles in a Sample of Turkish Students
The relationship between loneliness and psychological well-being among third-year students
Is marriage a dying institution in South Africa? Exploring changes in marriage in the context of ilobolo payments
Is blood thicker than water? Single Indian Singaporean women and the geographies of ‘being’ family
The F Word
Waiting for Mr. Right
A Cross-Cultural Study into Loneliness Amongst University Students
The Relationship between Loneliness and the Christian Faith
Narrating Love and Abuse in Intimate Relationships
Heterosexism and the Study of Women's Romantic and Friend Relationships
The Centrality and Costs of Heterosexual Romantic Love among First-Year College Women
When Finding a Mate Feels Urgent
Singleness, Sexuality, and the Dream of Marriage
Marriage and Cohabitation in South Africa
Perceived Attitudes Towards Romanticism; A Cross-cultural Study of American, Asian-Indian, and Turkish Young Adults
Young Adult Relationship Values at the Intersection of Gender and Sexuality
Social Anomie and Racial Segregation in South Africa
| Citations per year | 0.67 |
|---|---|
| Citation span | 2023 - 2023 (1) |
| Highly cited | No |