Test retake: Tomorrow, March 20th after school

Ch. 4, Section 2: Teenagers and Dating

Dating And Courtship Many Americans are familiar with dating, however, dating is not a universal thing Dating: The meeting of people as a romantic engagement Most common in places where people are free to choose their own partners Some societies do not allow dating and instead, enforce marriages that are arranged by parents Dating is relatively new for Americans Most of history shows that courtship was primarily the way young people interested in marriage interacted Courtship: Different from dating because its sole purpose is marriage

Dating And Courtship Dating did not emerge until after WWI Dating’s main purpose is entertainment and amusement In modern America, most people meet their eventual spouse through dating The process of dating is a continuum Continuum: A coherent whole characterized as a collection, sequence or progression Steps to the continuum of dating: 1. Casual dating 2. Steady dating 3. Engagement 4. Marriage

Dating And Courtship As people move throughout the steps of the continuum, the relationship gets more and more serious. The commitment to the relationship increases as well Courtship prior to dating was a very strict process A man had to meet with the parent’s of the woman and get their permission Courtship always took place within the watchful eye of someone. The couple was never left alone Marriage was always the end goal Modern dating comes from this process

The Emergence of Dating Industrialization helped dating to emerge within America Agriculture had primarily been the economy within the United States. It played a huge role with courtship, as well as marriage This meant parents had a lot of say within their child’s marriage since most men of marrying age waited to get married until their parent’s transferred the land into their name Throughout the Industrial Revolution, people moved away from their families to seek work They were able to make their own money and as a result, they were less dependent on their parents

Because of this newfound freedom young people had, modern dating as began to take form Another event that helped modern dating form was the invention of free public secondary education Public schools had both young men and young women, unlike private schools of the time This allowed them to interact with one another

After WWI, many new developments helped dating to form. Things like telephones and cars helped young people to feel even more free The equality women experienced in the 1920’s helped them to enter the workforce and work side by side with men This allowed much more interaction amongst single men and single women Dating was turning out to be much more practical than courtship had been

A study was done in the late 1920’s and early 1930’s on American dating patterns It took place at Pennsylvania State University and studied the student’s dating habits He found that casual dating was just something the students did for fun and that it typically did not lead to finding a spouse He also found that people selected their partners based on things like: popularity, clothing and good looks This was a contrast from courtship where honesty and dependability were valued

Findings in the study also found that dating was typically only limited to those in fraternities and sororities Those in fraternities and sororities dated those who were of similar social status This means those in what was considered the best fraternity dated members of the best sorority. Those in the “worst” fraternities and sororities dated one another as well Women ranked looks, money, clothes, cars and dancing ability as desirable traits

Later research tended to challenge the study’s findings Yes, people valued the casual aspect of dating and considered a form of entertainment However, people also valued character and personality A lot of the attributes of a partner for casual dating and attributes of a good spouse tended to overlap

Functions of Dating There are several functions dating serves: It is a form of entertainment. It allows people to go out and have fun It is a form of socialization. It teaches people how to behave in social situations It fulfills basic psychological needs These include things like conversation, companionship and understanding Dating helps people attain status

Traditional Dating patterns These can also be considered on a continuum as well Traditional Dating patterns Typically found in small towns Dating patterns similar to those of the 40’s and 50’s Responsibility fell on the man Both parties knew what was expected of them Peer pressure guided conformity to the rules Example: Wednesday is the typical day to ask a girl on a date for Saturday. If a boy asked on a Thursday, the girl would typically reject him If a girl accepted a date on a Thursday, she was basically accepting the fact that she was not the boy’s first choice

Traditional Dating Patterns Dating was so expected that if a young person did not have a date for Saturday night, they would hide in their room in shame Typically the activity of the date was something like a movie or sporting event. This made it so that if the two did not click, they could focus on the activity instead If the couple continued to date, they would be “going steady”. The boy usually gave the girl something to identify that she was his girlfriend. These were things like a class ring or a varsity jacket These couples were not expected to get married and could break up at any time

Contemporary Dating Patterns Dating today isn’t as strict as it was in the past Modern dating started in the 1960’s Today men and women can interact informally with no expectation of dating Dating is much more equal since both men and women can initiate a date This is a huge contrast to traditional dating With traditional dating, the man had to basically “sell himself” to the woman Today, that is not needed The world today and all the technology available gives teens more freedom than ever before

Amish Dating Patterns The lives of Amish teens are completely different from most teenagers in the U.S. However, despite all the things they have no access to, the Amish date just like high school students Amish begin to date around 16 They will typically receive a “courting buggy”, a horse drawn carriage Formal events are primarily where Amish teens hang out These are things like weddings, picnics, barn raisings At events, men sit on side and women on another and they will talk and sing hymns After this, they will get to mingle with one another. This ends up with the teens pairing off An Amish boy will offer to take the girl home in his buggy

Amish Dating Patterns If/when the couple decides to date, they usually will not tell anyone They will go on dates every week or every other week When they decide to get married, only then will they tell everyone The Amish do not believe in divorce so because of that dating is taken very seriously

On a sheet of loose leaf, answer questions 1-7 on page 120 On a sheet of loose leaf, answer questions 1-7 on page 120. You will be turning these in tomorrow for points.