Never Been Kissed: Correlates of Lifetime Kissing Status in U.S. University Students

Keywords

kissing, sexual health, sexual behavior, young adulthood, university students

Abstract

Kissing a partner occurs relatively early during adolescence. Thus, young adults who have never kissed are off-time from their peers. Substantial exploration in the areas of identity and intimacy occur during this period, and kissing may fulfill both of these functions, addressing autonomy and relatedness motives for sexual behaviors. We examined the prevalence and personal, contextual, and adjustment/health predictors of delayed onset of kissing. An ethnically and racially diverse sample of traditionally aged first year university students (N = 738; 50.7% female) completed online surveys. Only 14.2% of young adults had never kissed a partner on the lips. Compared to their peers who had kissed partners, young adults who had never kissed were more likely to be Asian-American, less likely to be in a romantic relationship, were less extraverted, were more likely to be in the Honors College, and drank alcohol less frequently. In bivariate models but not the multivariate model, young adults who had never kissed were more neurotic, had mothers who were less facilitating of independence, and had lower self-esteem. Findings inform understanding of normative sexuality development, and inform future research on normative and off-time sexual behaviors in young adulthood.

Original Publication Citation

Lefkowitz, E. S., Wesche, R., & Leavitt, C. E. (2018). Never been kissed: Correlates of lifetime kissing status in U.S. university students. Archives of Sexual Behavior, 47, 1293-1293.

Document Type

Peer-Reviewed Article

Publication Date

2018-02-20

Permanent URL

http://hdl.lib.byu.edu/1877/6961

Publisher

Archives of Sexual Behavior

Language

English

College

Family, Home, and Social Sciences

Department

Family Life

University Standing at Time of Publication

Assistant Professor

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