2023, Vol. 8, Special Issue 4, Part A

Emerging and young adulthood is a stressful yet important event with a life-changing experience. Identity formation and forming a romantic relationship is an important developmental task of young adulthood. It is a phase of life which is highly unstructured by social institutions. This study explored the effect of social influence (media, peer) on the romantic involvement of young adults of G.B. Pant University of Agriculture and Technology, Pantnagar, Uttarakhand and Punjab Agriculture University, Ludhiana, Punjab. 400 young adults were selected by using snowball sampling method. Social Influence on Romantic Relationship Scale (SIRRS) was used to explore the influence of social media on romantically involved young adults. Findings revealed that under-graduates were significantly more influenced by media and peer for entering into romantic relationship than above graduate students. The possible reason for differences in peer influence is based on the reaction of the peer group toward behaviours, reflecting the mechanism of social control.