Two studies examined the association between depressive symptoms and romantic involvement in adolescence and tested the hypothesis that romantic involvement is associated more strongly with symptoms among adolescents who have a more preoccupied style of relating, compared to adolescents who have a less preoccupied style of relating. Study 1 (N = 96 early adolescent females) examined concurrent associations and Study 2 (N = 80 late adolescent males and females) examined longitudinal associations. In both age groups, romantic involvement was associated with greater depressive symptoms and this was most true among adolescents with a preoccupied style of relating. Implications for models of depression and adolescent romantic functioning are discussed.

This article presents preliminary psychometric data on the reliability and validity of the newly developed Romantic Competence Interview (RCI). The RCI is an interviewer‐assessed measure designed to assess competence among adolescents regardless of romantic relationship status. Eighty‐three early adolescent girls (m age=13.45 years) recruited from local school districts were administered the RCI along with other measures of social competence, and peer and romantic functioning. Concurrent and 1‐year predictive associations were examined. Results indicated that the RCI was reliably coded and demonstrated good construct validity. Implications for the conceptualization and measurement of romantic competence are discussed, as is the importance of attending to issues of competence early in adolescence.

This study tested associations between adolescent perceptions of interparental conflict, adolescent attachment security with parents, and adolescent marital expectations and romantic experiences. Participants were 96 early adolescent females from 2 parent families. Insecurity was examined as a mediator of the association between negative perceptions of parental conflict and romantic outcomes.Results supported the mediation model in which adolescents' negative perceptions of parental conflict was associated with insecure attachment with parents, which was in turn associated with negative marital expectations and romantic experiences. Implications for understanding how parent-adolescent and interparental variables influence adolescent marital expectations and romantic experiences are discussed.