South African Adolescents’ Constructions of Intimacy in Romantic Relationships

Abstract

Localized understandings of adolescent romantic relationships are needed to expand our knowledge of the diversity of adolescent romantic experiences and to challenge negative discourses of adolescent heterosexual relationships. This study explored the constructions of intimacy of 20 adolescent men and women in romantic relationships from one low-income community in the Western Cape Province of South Africa. Using Charmaz’s constructivist grounded theory method, we found that our participants reproduced dominant romantic and gender discourses in their intimacy constructions within a community context of limited and limiting discourses. We argue that they could benefit from alternative discourses, more opportunities to interact privately and intimately with their partners, and to reflect on and articulate their romantic relationship experiences.