By Mimi
We have good news for your last one-night stand. According to a recent University of Iowa study, relationships that start as hook-ups aren’t necessarily doomed. While the survey did find that relationship quality was higher for those who waited until things were serious before having sex compared to those who were in “friends with benefits,” casual or booty-call relationships, the study found that early sex wasn’t actually to blame for the disparity.
It was when researchers factored out relationships that involved those who weren’t interested in getting serious—period—that they found no difference in relationship quality between those who had sex early on and those who waited. 
This means that if both parties are open to a serious relationship, it doesn’t matter when the sleeping together happens.
“We didn't see much evidence that relationships were lower quality because they started off as hook-ups," said one researcher in an interview with Science Daily. "The study suggests that rewarding relationships are possible for those who delay sex. But it's also possible for true love to emerge if things start off with a more Sex and the City approach, when people spot each other across the room, become sexually involved and then build a relationship."
Published this month in the journal Social Science Research, the study surveyed 642 heterosexual adults in the Chicago area. Relationship quality was measured by asking about the extent to which each person loved his or her partner, the relationship's future, level of satisfaction with intimacy and how their lives would be different if the relationship ended. The survey also asked when participants became sexually involved with their partners.
On the flip side, however, the study showed that people who aren’t looking for serious relationships will not make for good long-term relationship partners—no matter when sex happens.
We noticed the Catch 22 quality of this study’s findings. Sure, we can hook up on the first date, but if we’re looking for a long-term relationship and our partner isn’t, chances are, either it's going to end in heartbreak or we'll end up in a very unhappy relationship. Of course, if we're looking for a hook-up then we're looking for a hook-up—more power to us. But—and we hate to sound so old-fashioned—if we're looking for a long-term thing, unless our partner somehow demonstrates upfront that he is looking for a serious, long-term thing, too, it looks like the only way to find out for sure is…to wait.