Romantic Relationships in Adolescence

ROMANTIC RELATIONSHIPS IN ADOLESCENCE

1.0 INTRODUCTION

      Some believe that love is simply just a feeling. However, love is not merely just an emotion. Love is an uncontrollable, instinctual drive (Kayroxy101). While a majority may believe that love is a sensation, recent studies have proven that it is an essential part of the lives of human beings, integrated into the brain chemically, emotionally, and psychologically. A romantic love is a strong emotional control. Romantic love is an important aspect of human life for this reason. Without love integrated into the lives of people, human beings would cease to exist. During adolescence, teenagers start to experience romantic love. The increasing interest in adolescents’ romantic relationship stems have proven that they are not simple and trivial matter. Until today, researchers continue to focus on romantic relationships (Koenig et al., 2008). Different researches came across that the most supportive relationships for both female and male adolescents are romantic relationships. Romantic partners are a major support source for many adolescents especially in the late stage of adolescence (Furman & Buhrmester, 1992).

2.0 FEATURES OF ROMANTIC RELATIONSHIPS IN ADOLESCENCE     

      The dimensions of romantic experiences can vary according to individuals. We are guided by a framework which delineates five features of romantic relationship and experiences (Collins, 2003). The first feature which is most commonly examined is romantic involvement or experience which incorporates elements such as whether or not a person dates, when a person began dating, duration of the relationship, frequency and consistency of dating and relationships. The second feature is selecting partner. The third feature is the relationship’s content. The fourth feature is the quality of the romantic relationship. The final feature is the cognitive and emotional processes associated with the relationship which are closely related to each other.