Emerging adulthood is a time of exploration of love and partnership, and many emerging adults enter into one or more committed RRs during their twenties [12]. Despite the normative expectation to enter into a stable and enduring RR, the patterns, goals, and expectations of partnership among emerging adults have changed significantly compared to previous generations [2, 10]. Important changes include the more frequent occurrence of extramarital relationships [13], the deliberate postponement of marriage until individuals have achieved their personal life goals [14], and the emergence of casual forms of sex, such as ‘hookups’ and ‘friends with benefits’ [15]. Emerging adults may also feel caught between a stable and exclusive RR and other life goals, such as pursuing educational and career goals or devoting their leisure time to friends and family [16]. In this context, emerging adults appear to be more likely to have short-term relationships with multiple partners rather than a stable long-term relationship [17].

Despite the greater freedom in intimate behaviours, some North American authors report that a large proportion of young people do not engage in RRs. For example, Wood, Gillett, Linley, and Joseph [18] reported that one-third of young adults in their sample aged 20 to 25 were in committed RRs, 27% reported dating, and 40% were not in RRs. A similar percentage of young people in their twenties who were not in an RR was found in a Hendrick et al. study [19]. In addition, Wagner, Becker, Lüdtke and Trautwein [20] found that approximately 20% of emerging adults were not in an RR before age 25. The wide variability in how emerging adults experience romance may reinforce the modern perception of being single as something normative at this age. It is worth noting that being single is not necessarily associated with poorer well-being, as singles' well-being may differ depending on their RR interest. For example, Beckmeyer and Cromwell [3] found that single emerging adults who had little or no RR interest felt less lonely and had fewer depressive symptoms than singles who were very interested in RRs. Thus, single young adults may differ in their beliefs, motivations, and expectations about RR experiences, which should be considered in studies.

Compared to previous generations, significant changes in the development of RRs can also be seen in the opportunities that the Internet offers for building RRs. The number of cell phone-based dating applications (i.e., dating apps) has increased in recent years [21], of which Tinder is probably the most well-known [22]. Nearly half of emerging adults who participated in recent research on dating apps reported using them regularly [23, 24]. Previous studies on the psychological aspects of dating app use among emerging adults have mostly focused on the relationship with demographic characteristics, personality traits, mental health, and substance use. Dating apps, such as Tinder, are more commonly used by single men than women [25].

Further, online dating app use was positively related to sensation seeking, extraversion, and agreeableness [26]; higher rates of trait impulsivity, sexual risk behaviours, and more lifetime sexual partners [23]; higher substance use [25]; and lower sexual self-esteem, higher casual sexual activity, and riskier sexuality-related cognitions [27]. Although research has mostly shown a higher prevalence of risk behaviours and cognitions among dating app users than non-users, we believe that searching online for a potential partner and dating someone met through online dating platforms should be treated as a new normal, as it has become integrated into dating culture for many people, especially young adults [23]. In this study, we offer some additional insights into possible correlates of online search for a potential romantic and/or sexual partner by examining how beliefs about the importance of an RR and attitudes toward sexuality are related to emerging adults’ decisions to use a dating app and to date with a dating app match.

Attitudes and beliefs about the experience of RRs as a central part of the current life stage are still developing among emerging adults [28]. Although committed and long-lasting RRs are not the only normative and expected event in the intimate realm, most emerging adults set a stable and long-term intimate partnership as an important goal for their future lives [13, 28]. However, what is critical to the willingness to act is the subjective meaning ascribed to the RR. The degree of subjective importance of the relationship and its benefits in the context of other life priorities are an important source of motivation for individuals to enter into and maintain an intimate relationship, as well as for choosing the type of romantic involvement and behaviour in a relationship [26, 28]. A stronger desire for an RR translates into a stronger belief in the value of a lasting partnership and binding romantic commitments, which in turn leads to a more active approach to RRs [28, 29]. Relationship dismissal, on the other hand, is a belief in the lesser importance of an RR in one’s life, often seen as an obstacle to individual’s life plans, and the prioritization of personal goals over romantic commitments, which in turn leads to fewer romantic experiences and more relationship cycling [28].

The rise of cultural individualism in the last half century, which places the needs of the individual above those of the group and places less importance on adherence to social rules, has contributed to significant changes in sexual attitudes and behaviours. These converged toward greater sexual permissiveness in nonmarital sexual experiences and greater acceptance of cohabitation, same-sex sexual activity, and casual sex [30]. Hendrick, Hendrick and Reich [31] have developed a psychological framework to explore and understand individuals’ attitudes toward sexuality. In this study, we examined emerging adults’ attitudes toward sexuality based on two perspectives proposed by Hendrick et al. [31]: sexual activity as an other-oriented, closest form of communication and merging of two people (i.e. communion) and sexuality as a self-oriented (egocentric) intimate experience that supports permissiveness in sexual practices and the instrumentalization of sex [31]. Previous studies found significant differences in sexual attitudes by relationship status and dating app use. Sexual attitudes have been found to be more permissive among emerging adults who use dating apps [24, 32], as well as casual daters [33]. This study aims to complement previous studies by examining the common importance of different sexual attitudes (i.e., perceptions of sexuality as other- or self-oriented intimate experiences) and romantic beliefs in explaining emerging adults’ RR experiences, intentions and dating app use.

In this study, we examined whether romantic beliefs and sexual attitudes contribute to emerging adults' RR behaviours and intentions. Behaviours and intentions examined included RR status (in a relationship or single), low or high RR intent (single emerging adults), online dating activity (use of dating apps and offline dating based on online search for a potential partner), and number of RRs in one’s lifetime. We controlled for sample demographic characteristics (age, gender, and living situation), as previous studies had indicated an association between these characteristics and romantic involvement. Indeed, research on criteria for attaining adulthood has shown that higher ages of emerging adults are associated with higher levels of attained adulthood markers, of which a committed romantic relationship is one of the most important [9, 34]. Previous research has also documented gender differences in RR status and RR intention. Emerging adult women under the age of 30 are much more likely to be in a relationship [35] and place greater value on lifelong commitment [36] than their male counterparts. Accordingly, women who use dating apps tend to be more likely to search for a potential long-term intimate partner than men, while men, on the other hand, seem to use dating apps more frequently than women [37]. In terms of living situation, leaving the parental home has been shown to promote self-reliance [38], interpersonal forms of independence [39], and emotional autonomy [40]. Because independent living is an important marker of adulthood, individuals who live with their parents may be less motivated to engage in stable romantic relationships.

In summary, we hypothesised that controlling for demographic characteristics, beliefs about the importance of RRs and sexual attitudes would contribute to RR status and RR intent, dating app use and dating via dating apps, and the lifetime number of RRs.

The sample consisted of 440 emerging adults, of which 73.5% were female. Most participants (79.5%) were in the age range of 19 to 25 years (M = 22.78, SD = 3.00). The majority were students (81.4%), 15.7% employed and 3% unemployed. There 35.9% participants lived with their parents, 45.5% lived partially with parents and partially alone, and 18.6% lived independently. More than half of the participants were in a relationship at the time of the study (58%). There were 24.3% of participants who have not been in an RR yet, 26.8% reported one partner, 21.4% two partners, 15.7% three partners, 6.1% four partners, and 5.7% more than four partners in a lifetime (M = 2.70, SD = 1.44). Among those currently not in a relationship (n = 185), 30.8% expressed high RR intent. There were 139 participants (31.6%) who had already used dating apps. Among these, 81 individuals or 58.3%, reported going on a date with a person met through the dating app.

After receiving approval from the Ethics Committee of the Faculty of Arts, University of Ljubljana, we conducted the survey in the period of October to December 2022. A link to an online survey in the 1ka application was sent to students – preservice teachers – who attended an educational psychology course led by the first author and to university professors of various study programs at the University of Ljubljana, University of Maribor, and University of Primorska, who shared the link with their students and invited them to participate in the study. We also posted the invitation to participate in the study on various social networks (mainly Facebook groups) by personally addressing individuals aged between 19 and 29 years to participate in the study. The online survey held a statement of informed consent to participate in the study. Participants were informed that their cooperation was voluntary anonymous, and that data would be used only for the purpose of this research. All participants took part in the study voluntarily and were not financially reimbursed for their participation. On average, participants completed the survey in 10 minutes. The measures were presented in repeated order and were not randomized. Data were analysed using the SPSS 25 statistical package.

Hierarchical regression models were used to find out if romantic beliefs and sexual attitudes were associated with five aspects of romantic experiences and behaviors while controlling for participant demographics. We used hierarchical logistic regression for predicting categorical variables (RR status, RR intent, dating app use and dating via dating app) and hierarchical linear regression for predicting continuous variables (lifetime number of RRs). Each regression model consisted of two steps. Controls (i.e., demographics) were entered in step one, and BMRI and BSAS were entered in step two.

First, the assumptions for four hierarchical logistic regressions were examined. Cook’s distances were all below 1 and there were no signs of multicollinearity (any correlation was above .70). Collinearity tolerances were consistently above 0.1 in all the iterations of the hierarchical logistic regressions. Scatterplots revealed a linear relationship between every single predictor and the outcome.

Table 2 shows the results of the hierarchical logistic regression, predicting RR status (single, in a relationship) and RR intent (low vs. high; only singles). In the first step, females were 2.5 times more likely to be in a relationship than males. Those living semi-independently or with parents were less likely to be in a relationship than participants who lived independently. When adding beliefs about RR importance and sexual attitudes in the second step, gender (p = .001) and living semi-independently (p = .031) remained significant independent predictors. Relationship dismissal (p = .001) and instrumental sexual attitude (p = .004) added significantly to the prediction of RR status over and above the demographics. Higher relationship dismissal decreased the odds of being in a relationship by almost five times, while those emerging adults with higher BSAS Instrumentality scores were more likely to be in a relationship. The model was significantly different from the null model in both steps, and the total variance explained was R² = .16 and R² = .45 in the first and the second step, respectively. The results of the hierarchical logistic regression in predicting low or high RR intent among those participants who were single showed that demographics were not significant predictors in the first step. In the second step, relationship dismissal was a significant negative predictor (p = .001), which implies that those with higher relationship dismissal scores were less likely (about five times) to have high RR intent. The model was not statistically significant in the first step; however, it was significant in step 2 (p = .001), explaining 38% of the total variance (R² = .38).

Results of the hierarchical logistic regression for predicting the use of dating apps and having gone on a date with a person met through the dating app are shown in Table 3. In predicting dating app use, both age (p = .005) and gender (p = .016) were found to be statistically significant predictors in the first step. Females were 43% less likely to use dating apps than males. Older participants were slightly more likely to have used dating apps than younger ones. In the second step, age (p = 0.005) remained a significant predictor, while sexual permissiveness (p = 0.001) added a significant contribution in the prediction of the use of dating apps over and above participants’ demographics. Those with a more positive attitude towards sexual permissiveness were about 1.5 times more likely to have used dating apps. The predicting model explained 5% of the variance (R² = .05) in the first step and 12% of the variance in the second one (R² = .12). In predicting dating via a dating app, age was a significant predictor (p = .003) in the first step. Older participants were more likely to go on a date with a person they met via the dating app. In the second step of regression, age (p = 0.003) and gender (p = .05) were significant control predictors, while relationship dismissal (p = .016) and sexual permissiveness (p = .044) added a significant contribution over and above age and gender. Females were 2.4 times more likely to have gone on a date with a person met through the app than males. Those with higher Relationship Dismissal scores were less likely to have gone on a date with a person met through dating apps, while those with more permissive sexual attitudes were more likely to have gone on such a date. The model explained 13% of the total variance in the first step (R² = .13) and 22% of the total variance in the second (R² =.22).

When predicting the lifetime number of RRs, the demographics entered in Step 1 were all statistically significant and explained 11.6% of the criterion variance (Table 4). Adding the BMRI and BSAS dimensions improved the model fit; the criterion variance explained by the predictor model in Step 2 was 13.9%. Older participants, females, and those who lived independently (vs. those who lived semi-independently) had a higher lifetime number of RRs. Furthermore, lower relationship dismissal and higher sexual permissiveness were significant independent predictors of the lifetime number of RRs.