Young Adult Casual Sexual Behavior: Life Course Specific Motivations and Consequences.

Most young adults have had some casual sex experience. However, it is important to understand the motivations for such behavior because of potential health consequences. We investigate the motivations for and consequences of casual sex using a life course lens. We use the Toledo Adolescent Relationship Study to examine a diverse sample of young adults with recent casual sex experiences (N=210). We draw on a subset of in-depth relationship narratives (N=44) to provide a more nuanced understanding of the motivations for and consequences of casual sex. We find that sexual pleasure and substance use remain the most common reasons for participating in casual sex. However, young adults report life course specific motives including geographic mobility, experiential learning from prior romantic relationships, and feeling too young to be tied down. These findings highlight the multiple meanings of casual sex, particularly during this phase of the life course.