Although romantic relationship status is not explicitly addressed in PBT, there is theoretical reason to examine it as part of a broader set of psychosocial risk factors for alcohol use and problems in emerging adulthood. From a developmental perspective, romantic relationships in emerging adulthood are an important context for intimacy and for experimentation in different types of relationships, typically without the pressure of marital commitment (Arnett, 2000). There is variability in emerging adults' participation in and commitment to romantic relationships, and this variability is linked to antecedent psychosocial factors. For example, those with lower self-efficacy, immature dependency (wishing to be cared for while also fearing abandonment, akin to “dinginess”), and lower parental support are more likely to be in non-stable or non-intimately committed romantic relationships seven years later in emerging adulthood (Shulman et al., 2013). Thus, emerging adult romantic relationship participation appears to have meaningful associations with earlier psychosocial factors.
