Commitment and Sacrifice in Emerging Adult Romantic Relationships

The development of commitment and satisfaction with sacrifice has been associated with relationship health and stability. Given the importance of early romantic relationships, the purpose of the present study was to explore how these constructs relate and develop in an emerging adult population (n 246). Through an initial confirmatory factor analysis, we found the two constructs can be distinct. Then, using interdependence theory and a cross-lagged model over three time points, we found support for a bidirectional relationship between commitment and satis-faction with sacrifice. In addition, we found a main effect for relationship length and instability (i.e., cycling) on Time 1 and Time 3 dedication respectively. KEYWORDS commitment, dating relationships, early adulthood, interdependence Address correspondence to J. Kale Monk, Department of Human and Communit