Negotiating Current and Future Partnerships

Abstract

Contemporary young adults may well be spending longer periods of time living alone or with friends rather than partners, but there is little evidence to suggest that they are rejecting the pursuit of sexual relationships per se. A casual stroll down any urban high street on a Saturday night would confirm this, not to mention the proliferation of dating agencies and singles clubs all dedicated to finding the perfect partner - or at least the next partner. In 1998, nine out often 25-34-year-old Britons reported having had at least one sexual partner in the previous year, with most having had more than one (Office for National Statistics, 2000), whilst a third of never-married men aged under 35 and four in ten of their female peers claim to be in a steady relationship with someone they consider to be a partner (Ermisch, 2000). Early marriage may be going out of fashion, but sex, love and romance appear to remain high on the agenda for most twenty-somethings.