A Comparison of the Sexual Behaviors and Attitudes of Adolescent Girls with Older Vs. Similar-Aged Boyfriends

Sexual behaviors and attitudes of female adolescents were studied as a function of age of boyfriend. Boyfriend's age was dichotomized: similar-aged was defined as within 2 years of the girls' age; older aged was 3 or more years older than the girl. A school-based, ethnically diverse sample of 9th-grade girls (N = 146) who had been in a serious romantic relationship was surveyed on 5 dimensions of sexual attitudes, 2 classes of sexual motives, 7 normative sexual behaviors, and 3 types of risky sexual practices. Results showed that in terms of behavior, girls with older boyfriends were more likely than girls with similar-aged boyfriends to engage in all forms of sexual intimacy, to have sex under the influence of alcohol or drugs, and to experience sexual coercion. In terms of sexual attitudes, girls with older boyfriends were more likely to endorse beliefs that guys are sexually driven, that sex just happens and is spontaneous, and that sex is related to maturity. These results are discussed in terms of a potential power differential that emerges when girls date older boys.     

Conflict Negotiation Tactics in Romantic Relationships in High School Students

To investigate how teenagers deal with conflict in romantic relationships, 869 high school students (mean age 16, range 14–19), experienced in romantic relations, completed a conflict tactic scale (adapted from Rands et al., 1981, and Straus, 1979). A principal components analysis revealed six factors, which in descending frequency of use were Compromise, Distraction, Avoidance, Overt Anger, Seeking Social Support, and Violence. Conflict tactics varied as a function of demographic characteristics. Specifically, older teens used Compromise more than younger; girls used Compromise and Overt Anger more and Distraction less than boys; African-Americans used Violence more and Compromise less than European-Americans, whereas Asian-Americans used Distraction and Avoidance more than European-Americans. To assess predictors of conflict tactics, teens also completed scales assessing self-esteem (Rosenberg, 1965), immature and mature defense mechanisms (Araujo and Steiner, 1998, under review) and internalizing and externalizing problem behaviors (Achenbach, 1966). Each of these was singly and jointly associated with the use of conflict tactics. In multiple regression analyses, the externalizing problem score best predicted Overt Anger and Violence in dealing with romantic conflict, the internalizing problem score best predicted Avoidance and Distraction; whereas the mature defense mechanism score was the best predictor of seeking Social Support and Compromise.