What do teenagers expect to gain from hooking up?

Manning, W. , Giordano, P. , & Longmore, M. (2006). Hooking up: The relationship contexts of "nonrelationship" sex. Journal of Adolescent Research, 21(5), 459-483.

This article analyzes the concept of hooking up (engaging in sexual activities with partners whom they are not dating) which more than half of sexually active teenagers are engaging in. When comparing teenagers in grades 11, 9, and 7 of those that had engaged in sexual intercourse teenage boys engaged in sexual relations with a partner whom they were not dating more often than girls (68%), but girls closely follow (52%). The researchers refute a common idea that the sex outside of relationships occurs between people who do not know each other. They actually found that 74% of teenagers engaging in these relations report having sex with a friend. They also found that most teens had sex with partners of the same age. A third of those engaging in non dating sexual relations said these relations made them feel closer to their partner and a third also indicated that they wanted to begin a traditional relationship with their sexual partner.
written by: Brittney Payne