Content Analysis of Romantic Comedies IN PRESS ...

Content Analysis of Romantic Comedies 16approval. As adolescence is a time where approval by others increases in importance, themajority of depictions of family and friends approving of partners may serve to reinforce theimportance of viewers’ own family and friends’ opinions of their own partners.“Sex” and “Post-Sex Behaviour” were combined to create the broader category“Sexual Activity”. After sex, couples either cuddled and talked (such as in Keeping TheFaith), connected emotionally (as in Something’s Gotta Give, where both characters cry) orone individual woke up before the other and left (as in Maid In Manhattan). However, withonly very few incidents coded pertaining to post-sex behaviour, viewers may be left stillunsure as to what is appropriate in such circumstances.“Fate/Soul Mate” and “Special Relationship” were combined to create “One-of-a-Kind Relationship”. While there were 17 coded references to either fate or to finding one’s“soul mate”, (almost half of which were coded in a single film, Serendipity), the majority ofthis axial category consisted of characters’ claims and/or behaviours that suggested there wassomething special or different about their relationship. For example, in How To Lose A GuyIn Ten Days, a male character brings his partner home to meet his family, at which point it isrevealed he has never done this with a partner before, and later his partner writes in themagazine she works for that the last ten days with her partner were the best in her life.“Trust in Partner”, consisting of “Trust” and “Confiding/Opening Up” was one ofthe smallest categories, comprising only 0.7% of the total incidents coded. Characters wereshown to open up to their partners about personal memories, insecurities, and feelings.Although partners were shown to listen and offer emotional support if needed in return, thefar greater number of incidents of deception coded may still give adolescent viewers thefeeling of a need to demonstrate caution in relationships.The two final categories to be created at this stage were “Time Together”,(consisting of open coding categories “Dates”, “Being Playful Together”, “CelebratingAnniversary”, and “Spending Time Together”) and “Gestures” (consisting of “Chivalry”,