ABSTRACT
The fact that mating relationships are often referred to by a variety of names—including romantic or love relationships, dating or courtship relationships, cohabiting relationships, reproductive relationships, and spousal or marital relationships—poses problems for researchers. For example, some mating relationships are not characterized by romantic or passionate love, and not all mating relationships result in cohabitation, marriage, or reproduction. To alleviate this conceptual confusion and to classify types of relationships in a way that facilitates insight into their commonalities and differences, sociologists Scanzoni, Polonko, Teachman, and Thompson (1989) argue that sexually based primary relationships constitute an exceedingly important—and separate—relationship category whose various forms are united by the fact that sexual exchanges and activities are viewed by the partners as a legitimate expectation for their relationship regardless of whether or not they are currently engaging in sexual activity. This definition avoids the complication posed by using such terms as “romantic” or “marital” or “reproductive” to describe mating relationships, and it also allows for the possibility that some mating relationships may not be characterized by high amounts of (or by any) ongoing sexual activity. Some partners do not engage in sexual activity (couples in early stages of dating relationships) or have ceased to engage in sexual activity (spouses in longer-term marriages); although sexual activity is not occurring, the partners and others would view such activity as legitimate and socially acceptable if it were to occur. This chapter explores a number of aspects of human mating, including theories of mating dynamics, empirical research on mate preferences, and three seeming “universals” associated with mate selection (marriage, monogamy, and divorce). We also consider attitudes about the role of sex in mating relationships, the factors that influence sexual attraction between partners, sexual satisfaction and communication in beginning and established mating relationships, and sexual problems that some partners experience.
