Chunk #12 — The role of romantic relationship status in pathways of risk for emerging adult alcohol use — Parental Alcohol Problems, Romantic Relationship Status, and Alcohol Use — Positive Affect Regulation Pathway from Parental Alcohol Problems to Romantic Relationship Status and Alcohol Use
We hypothesize that positive urgency may also be related to emerging adults' romantic relationship status. Involvement in romantic relationships becomes increasingly normative during emerging adulthood (Carver, Joyner, & Udry, 2003; Shulman et al., 2013), and is associated with positive emotionality (Shiner, Masten, & Tellegen, 2002). The mesolimbic dopamine pathway is also implicated in social bonding (Burkett & Young, 2012), suggesting that exploration and experimentation in romantic relationships may be rewarding, in part, because these novel social experiences tap into relevant neurocircuitry. On the basis of these lines of evidence, we would expect there to be continuity between individuals' positive urgency, their romantic relationship involvement, and their alcohol use.
