Emergence of Dating in the U.S.

• Dating is a recent innovation in courtship systems
• Coeducational schools were less common before the 20th century
• Introducing a young man to a young woman's parents was required and time-consuming
• Couples had limited leisure time together, often spent with family

Emergence of Dating

• Dating in the U.S. began among college students after World War I.
• Dating became widespread in the 1920s and 1930s.
• Dating became commonplace among high school students and younger teenagers in the 1940s and 1950s.
• Factors that encouraged dating included urbanization and industrialization.
• These trends led to more young people together in neighborhoods and coeducational schools.
• Increased leisure time, reduced parental supervision, and increased female involvement in activities outside the home also played a role.
• World War I shifted women into jobs previously held by men.
• Young women were carefully supervised and rarely met boys casually before this time.
• Technological advancements like the automobile allowed young people to leave parental supervision.
• The telephone made conversations easier and more frequent without formal introductions.
• The movement from farms to cities led to the development of entertainment like movie shows, soda fountains, and dance halls.
• These drew young couples into dating and informal activities.
• Changes in young women's behavior, such as riding bicycles and raising hemlines, were viewed as scandalous by older generations.
• Dating differed from previous ways of starting relationships in five ways

Elements of Dating

• A contemporary date includes an event or activity that is shared by two or more people of the opposite sex.
• Traditionally, the male would ask the female out and be responsible for costs and bringing her home safely.
• Dating as a formal event is giving way to a more casual attitude about going out together.
• Dating may be planned months in advance or just minutes before.
• It may involve one couple, another couple, or a group.
• An event becomes a date when one person asks another to share in the activity.
• This then forms a paired relation for the duration of the event.
• The pairing may be loose, casual, and tentative, or tenacious and exclusive.

Reasons, Purposes, and Functions of Dating

• Young people date for various reasons, including fun or recreation.
• Younger teens view dating as primarily fun.
• Some date because it is expected, and they want to avoid social criticism.
• Others may not know why they date, simply using it as a way to pass the time.
• Older adolescents and young adults may date to find a partner for marriage.
• Dating introduces and familiarizes young people with others of the opposite sex.
• Dating provides ways for them to interact and learn about each other.
• It is a mechanism of heterosexual socialization.
• Dating experiences help young people learn what is acceptable and preferable to members of the opposite sex.
• Dating helps individuals clarify what characteristics are desirable in a mate and teaches one about oneself.
• Dating moves individuals into heterosexual relations and, eventually, into marriage.