For example, one of the hypotheses in the article had to do with the level of stress in students involved in long-distance relationships. This helped me to see that a part of my own research would be enriched by studying the stress level of my target population.
My second article served to illustrate the importance that college students place on their romantic relationships. The article shows the wealth of emotions that students feel as a result of a relationship. It follows that the importance one places on this type of relationship may distract from other activities, including developing other relationships.
The third article had to do with student social adjustment in general. It proposed that there might be a correlation between the level of social adjustment (referred to in the article as "sense of community") and the emotional and psychological well-being of the student. This related to my research because it helped me to define the types of things I would be looking for in my own evaluation of student social adjustment. It shows that the "sense of community", or social adjustment, affects other aspects of the students life, like the ability of the student to manage other relationships, such as romantic relationships.
Based on these related articles, I found that both the depression level and the stress level of students rise dramatically when the student is faced with a troubled romantic relationship. Whether a relationship is suddenly ended, or is challenged by a new long-distance factor, the resulting depression and anxiety add to the stress level of an individual. These are important findings as they relate to my research because I expect to find that these levels will affect social adjustment. I assume that these factors tend to present obstacles to a student's social development, making it more difficult to create and maintain friendships. .
My own investigation goes one step further to find out how students sustain relationships with people who are not in their immediate social circle.
