El amor y la formación de relaciones de pareja en la sociedad cuencana contemporánea

Abstract

In recent times, changes have occurred in all spheres of life as a result of the advances and the development of society. It is stated that we live in “Liquid Modernity”, where social models and structures no longer last and a new configuration of human relationships has been determined. The changes that have occurred in this globalized world have had an impact on the sphere of love, making it ephemeral and fragile, where romantic relationships are subject to the logic of consumption and low commitment. However, since these statements are based on European studies, the reality in other contexts, such as Latin America, remains unknown. Therefore the objective of this research was to understand how young adults from the city of Cuenca perceive love and how they live romantic relationships. In-depth interviews were carried out with 12 young adults from the city of Cuenca, males and females, between the ages of 19 and 30. The data was processed through thematic analysis. According to the results, love is perceived as the understanding, patience and support that a woman provides for her partner. The answer to an unplanned pregnancy was always marriage, which evidenced that cohabitation was not considered as an option for the participants. Lastly, the female partner is the only one in charge of home duties such as taking care of children, which meant that she had to find the best way to balance housework and career. The results gathered from this research suggest the need to further analyze this topic by carrying out quantitative studies, and also the need to develop education programs that focus on affection.