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The media and American adolescent sexuality relates to the effect the media has on the sexuality of American adolescents and the portrayal thereof.
According to Sexual Teens, Sexual Media: Investigating Media's Influence on Adolescent Sexuality, adolescence can be divided into three different stages; early (ages 8-13 years), middle (ages 13-16 for girls, 14-17 for boys) and late (16 and older for girls, 17 and older for boys). Each stage focuses on different aspects of cognitive, physical, social and psychological development. Although not all teens develop through adolescence at the same rate, the stages usually follow a specific pattern. For teens in the early stages of adolescence, they are in the beginning stages of puberty. In this stage of adolescence, relationships begin to become important as well as their physical appearance. Middle adolescence is characterized by independence from their family and increased activity with their peers. This is the stage in which sexual activity may begin to occur. The last stage of adolescence the teenager begins to feel more secure in their bodies and their sexual behavior. With those aspects of adolescence in mind, media can play an important role in how teen shape their views about sexuality. [1]
Researchers remain divided on the role of sexuality in the media on adolescent sexual health. The American Academy of Pediatrics has argued that media representations of sexuality may influence teen sexual behavior. [2] However, some scholars have argued that such claims have been premature. [3] Despite increasing amounts of sexual media, US government statistic state that teens have delayed the onset of sexual intercourse in recent years. [4] According to journalism professor and media critic Jane Brown, the media is piquing teen interest in sex at ages younger than before. [5] Brown argues that research has "found a direct relationship between the amount of sexual content children see and their level of sexual activity or their intentions to have sex in the future." [5] [6] However, the direction (and mechanism) of causality remains unclear.
Some scholars argue that media in the United States is the most sexually suggestive in the world. [7] According to that view, the sexual messages contained in film, television, and music are becoming more explicit in dialog, lyrics, and behavior. In addition, the messages may contain unrealistic, inaccurate, and misleading information. Some scholars argue that still-developing teens may be particularly vulnerable to media effects. [8] A 2001 report found that teens rank the media second only to school sex education programs as a leading source of information about sex, [2] but a 2004 report found that "the media far outranked parents or schools as the source of information about birth control." [7]
Media often portray emotional side effects of sexuality, such as guilt and disappointment, but less often physical risks such as pregnancy or STDs. [9] One media analysis found that sex was usually between unmarried couples and that examples of using condoms or other contraception were "extremely rare." [6] Many of programs or films do not depict consequence for sexual behavior. For example, only 10% programs that contain sexual scenes include any warnings to the potential risks or responsibilities of having sex such as sexually-transmitted diseases or pregnancy. [10] In television programming aimed at teens, more than 90% of episodes had at least one sexual reference in it, with an average of 7.9 references per hour. [11]
However, government statistics suggest that since 1991, both teen sex and teen pregnancy have declined dramatically despite the media generally become increasingly sexually explicit. [12]
Some scholars feel that adolescents may turn to the media as a "sexual super peer" when they seek information about sexual norms and adult roles because of the lack of information about sexuality readily available to them. [6] For example, in one study of 13-and 14-year-olds, heavy exposure to sexually-oriented television also increased acceptance of nonmarital sex. [10] Another study found that teens overestimate how many of their peers are sexually active, a problem that is contributed to by the media. [13]
Another study found that middle-school-aged boys who watch music videos or pro-wrestling one day a week are 10% more likely to have a higher acceptance rate for rape than boys who do not watch any such content.[ citation needed ] Boys who watch music videos four days a week and pro wrestling 1.7 days a week (the mean exposure rate for boys) have 70% higher odds of endorsing a greater level of rape acceptance. [14] "Both music videos and pro wrestling shows are popular with youth, combine violent and sexual content, and glorify individuals who behave violently." [14]
Some researchers have found a correlation between the amount of television with high sexual content that teenagers watch and an increased likelihood of them becoming pregnant or fathering a child out of wedlock. [15] Some studies suggest that teens exposed to the most sexual content on TV are twice as likely as teens watching less of such material to become pregnant before they reach age 20. [16]
The researchers believe that reducing the amount of sexual content adolescents watch on television could substantially reduce the teen pregnancy rate. [15] "It's a cumulative effect," Brown believes. "It's probably not any one portrayal that makes the difference, but it's a consistent, and now unhealthy, sexual script that adolescents do see as a depiction of appropriate behavior." [17]
Several complementary studies have found that television viewing can influence multiple aspects of reproductive health among youths and that "earlier sexual initiation is associated with negative health outcomes." [15] Previous research has suggested two ways that glamorized perceptions of sex may contribute to teen pregnancy by encouraging teens to become sexually active early in their adolescence and by promoting inconsistent use of contraceptives. [16]
Some studies have also found that adolescents whose media diet was rich in sexual content were more than twice as likely as others to have had sex when they were 16. [18] [19] [20] In a Kaiser Family Foundation study, 76 percent of teens said that one reason young people have sex is that TV shows and movies make it seem normal for teens. [10] In addition to higher likelihoods that an adolescent exposed to sexual content in the media will engage in sexual behaviors, they also are more likely to intend to have sex in the future and to have more positive expectations of sex. [21]
Some studies suggest that children who watch adult content on television are more likely to have sex earlier once they reach adolescence. [22] [23] For every hour of adult-targeted television or movies watched by children when they were 6 to 8 years old, there was a 33% increased risk of becoming sexually active in early adolescence.
"Children have neither the life experience nor the brain development to fully differentiate between a reality they are moving toward and a fiction meant solely to entertain," explained David Bickham, a staff scientist in the Center on Media and Child Health. [23] "Children learn from the media, and when they watch media with sexual references and innuendos, our research suggests they are more likely to engage in sexual activity earlier in life." [23]
Other research has suggested that linking sexuality in media with adolescent sexual behavior is premature. [3] Steinberg and Monahan reanalyzed a dataset of teen sexual behavior (Collins et al.) by using propensity score matching and discovered that with other risk factors controlled, the viewing of sexual media did not predict early onset of sexual behavior in adolescents. The authors concluded that links between media viewing and adolescent sexuality are more tenuous than previously believed.
Researchers on both sides of the debate acknowledge that assigning causality to correlations between media use and sexual behavior are difficult because of the lack of experimental research, and difficulty controlling for all potential confounding variables. [24]
One study found that the relationship between exposure to sexual contact in the media and increased sexual activity among adolescents was more pronounced in white youths than black youths. Black teens are more likely to be influenced by their friends' sexual experiences and by their parents' expectations than by what they see in the media. [25]
Individuals who are already at risk of being attracted to sexual aggression are more likely to be influenced by pornographic exposure. That in turn explains that such individuals are more likely to believe in the various unusual sexual behaviors as common, which causes negative effects towards sexual experiences. However, it is important that once the negative attitudes have been formed, it was not easily reversed by education. [26]
Adolescent exposure to pornography is divided into two different sections: unintentional exposure and intentional exposure. The unintentional exposure rate for US adolescents was found to be from 19% [27] to 32% [28] from 2007 to 2013. Intentional pornography adolescent viewers from 10 to 17 years old take up 34% of the population at that age range. [29] In 2012, in a study among 1000 adolescents, 66% of males and 39% of females have reported that they have been exposed to pornography. [30] Between grades 3 and 10, more than 90% of children will be exposed to pornography. [31] Psychiatrist Jerald says that access, affordability, and anonymity have made online sexual activity "extraordinarily common" among all ages, including adolescents. [31] Older youth are more likely than younger youth to seek porn. [32]
With the development of technology, even with the help of parental control, teenagers still find their ways to get access to the "blocked content". [33] The most common ways are exploiting the use of the Internet of thing (IoT) to connect to different devices, stealing their parent passwords, hacking the router, factory-resetting their devices, using Virtual Private Network (VPN), and bypassing filter servers by using different domain name service (DNS). [33] Adolescents who have their devices surveillance by parental control often feel that their privacy has been invaded by their parents. [34] However, the level of information secrecy is inversely proportional to the privacy invasion behavior, [34] followed by the Simpson's paradox. The relationship conflict between parents who apply parental control with no clear set rules is found. [35]
Exposure to sexual media can be a predictor of early sex engagement, [36] which includes unsafe sex practice and having multiple sex partners. The likelihood of sexual engagement in adolescents correlates to the number of times they have been exposed to sexual media content. [36]
Sexual fetishism is a very common category in porn. The number of porn fetish clips has been increasing every year. In 2014, the estimation of fetish clips reached 80,000 clips per month. [37] Adolescents who encounter this type of video likely to develop sexual aggression in later life. [38] Other findings also show that 61% of serial killers are pornography collectors. Another study shows that pornography consumption and sexual fantasy deviants that cause sadism lead to the likelihood that individuals will commit a sexual offense. [39]
In 2018, a study was done by Taylor Kohut to experiment on the wellness of adolescents who have exposed to pornography. Female adolescents who have been exposed to pornography in the result were found with dysregulated mood and self-evaluation. Disclosure of pornography at an early age also affects the relationship in adulthood life. [40] One of the behaviors established from watching porn is known as undisclosed behavior. [40] That relates to keeping secrets away from the other half. As a result, studies have shown that relationship satisfaction between both partners is decreased. [40] Results can lead to tension and distress in both partners. [40]
Watching pornography creates a virtual image of body ideals, sexual relationship behavior. Fictions in pornography can distort reality, [41] which can cause body shaming and sexual dissatisfaction. Researches also show that men who watch are less satisfied with their sexual life. [42] The decrement of pornography consumption can help individual increases their self-confidence. [43] Body-shaming affects men and women differently after being reinforced by the pornography standard. Males consider their sexual performance, and females consider their body image to match the performance. [43] Since that adolescents have less experience with their partners, they are more likely to be distorted by the pornographic image of human sexuality. In intense cases, it can develop into sexual aggression. [43]
Although some literature exists on traditional forms of media (e.g., television, radio, magazines), the empirical research that examines the impact on children of exposure to non-violent sexual material is extremely limited. [44]
— National Academy of Sciences, Youth, Pornography, and the Internet, 2002
The Journal of Adolescence concluded in 2019 that the adolescent brain, due to its immature development, may be more sensitive to sexually explicit material, but due to a lack of empirical research, no firm conclusions can be drawn. [45]
There are considerable ethical problems with performing some kinds of research on the effects of pornography use on minors. [46] For example, Rory Reid (UCLA) declared, "Universities don't want their name on the front page of a newspaper for an unethical study exposing minors to porn." [47] [48]
Adolescence is a transitional stage of physical and psychological development that generally occurs during the period from puberty to adulthood. Adolescence is usually associated with the teenage years, but its physical, psychological or cultural expressions may begin earlier or end later. Puberty typically begins during preadolescence, particularly in females. Physical growth and cognitive development can extend past the teens. Age provides only a rough marker of adolescence, and scholars have not agreed upon a precise definition. Some definitions start as early as 10 and end as late as 25 or 26. The World Health Organization definition officially designates an adolescent as someone between the ages of 10 and 19.
Preadolescence is a stage of human development following middle childhood and preceding adolescence. It commonly ends with the beginning of puberty. Preadolescence is commonly defined as ages 9–12 ending with the major onset of puberty. It may also be defined as simply the 2-year period before the major onset of puberty. Preadolescence can bring its own challenges and anxieties.
Teenage pregnancy, also known as adolescent pregnancy, is pregnancy in a female adolescent under the age of 20. This includes those who are legally considered adults in their country. The WHO defines adolescence as the period between the ages of 10 and 19 years. Pregnancy can occur with sexual intercourse after the start of ovulation, which can happen before the first menstrual period (menarche). In healthy, well-nourished girls, the first period usually takes place between the ages of 13 to 16.
Pornography addiction is the scientifically controversial application of an addiction model to the use of pornography. Pornography may be part of compulsive sexual behavior with negative consequences to one's physical, mental, social, or financial well-being. While the World Health Organization's ICD-11 (2022) has recognized compulsive sexual behaviour disorder (CSBD) as an "impulsive control disorder", CSBD is not an addiction, and the American Psychiatric Association's DSM-5 (2013) and the DSM-5-TR (2022) do not classify compulsive pornography consumption as a mental disorder or a behavioral addiction.
Abstinence-only sex education is a form of sex education that teaches not having sex outside of marriage. It often excludes other types of sexual and reproductive health education, such as birth control and safe sex. Comprehensive sex education, by contrast, covers the use of birth control and sexual abstinence.
In media discourse, sexual content is material depicting sexual behavior. The sexual behavior involved may be explicit, implicit sexual behavior such as flirting, or include sexual language and euphemisms.
Adolescent sexuality is a stage of human development in which adolescents experience and explore sexual feelings. Interest in sexuality intensifies during the onset of puberty, and sexuality is often a vital aspect of teenagers' lives. Sexual interest may be expressed in a number of ways, such as flirting, kissing, masturbation, or having sex with a partner. Sexual interest among adolescents, as among adults, can vary greatly, and is influenced by cultural norms and mores, sex education, as well as comprehensive sexuality education provided, sexual orientation, and social controls such as age-of-consent laws.
The sexuality of US adolescents includes their feelings, behaviors and development, and the place adolescent sexuality has in American society, including the response of the government, educators, parents, and other interested groups.
Teen dating violence is the physical, sexual, or psychological / emotional abuse within a dating relationship among adolescents. Intimate partner violence (IPV) has been a well examined and documented phenomenon in adults; however, there has not been nearly as much study on violence in adolescent dating relationships, and it is therefore not as well understood. The research has mainly focused on Caucasian youth, and, as of 2013, there are no studies which focus specifically on IPV in adolescent same-sex relationships.
The effects of pornography on individuals or their intimate relationships depend on the type of pornography used and differ from person to person. Consumption of pornographic material is associated with negative and positive impacts. It has been studied particularly for associations with addiction as well as effects on the brain over time. Some literature reviews suggest that pornographic images and films can be addictive, particularly when combined with masturbation, while others maintain that data remains inconclusive. Other research has looked at pornographic material's relation to acts of sexual violence, with varying results.
Youth suicide is when a young person, generally categorized as someone below the legal age of majority, deliberately ends their own life. Rates of youth suicide and attempted youth suicide in Western societies and other countries are high. Youth suicide attempts are more common among girls, but adolescent males are the ones who usually carry out suicide. Suicide rates in youths have nearly tripled between the 1960s and 1980s. For example, in Australia suicide is second only to motor vehicle accidents as its leading cause of death for people aged 15 to 25.
Research has found that attempted suicide rates and suicidal ideation among lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender (LGBT) youth are significantly higher than among the general population.
Sexting is sending, receiving, or forwarding sexually explicit messages, photographs, or videos, primarily between mobile phones. It may also include the use of a computer or any digital device. The term was first popularized early in the 21st century and is a portmanteau of sex and texting, where the latter is meant in the wide sense of sending a text possibly with images. Sexting is not an isolated phenomenon but one of many different types of sexual interaction in digital contexts that is related to sexual arousal.
In the United States, sex education is taught in two main forms: comprehensive sex education and abstinence-only as part of the Adolescent Family Life Act, or AFLA. Comprehensive sex education is also called abstinence-based, abstinence-plus, abstinence-plus-risk-reduction, and sexual risk reduction sex education. This approach covers abstinence as a choice option, but also informs adolescents about age of consent and the availability of contraception and techniques to avoid contraction of sexually transmitted infections. Every state within the U.S. has a mandated AIDS Education Program.
Sexual suggestiveness is visual, verbal, written or behavioral material or action with sexual undertones implying sexual intent in order to provoke sexual arousal.
Adolescent sexuality in Canada is not as well documented as adolescent sexuality in the United States; despite the proximity of the two nations, Canada has its own unique culture and generalizations about Canadian adolescent sexuality based on American research can be misleading. Because of this, several surveys and studies have been conducted which acquired information on Canadian adolescent sexuality. Surveys which provide this information include the Canadian Community Health Survey (CCHS), the National Population Health Survey (NPHS) and the National Longitudinal Survey of Children and Youth (NLSCY). According to information drawn from the Canadian Community Health Survey and the National Population Health Survey, in 2005 43% of teens aged 15 to 19 reported that they had had sexual intercourse at least once.
The exploitation of women in mass media is the use or portrayal of women in mass media as objects to increase the appeal of media or a product to the detriment of, or without regard to, the interests of the women portrayed, or women in general. This process includes the presentation of women as sexual objects and the setting of feminine beauty ideals that women are expected to reflect. Sexual exploitation of women in the media dates back to 19th century Paris, in which ballerinas were exposed to harassment and objectification. The ballerinas in the Paris Opera Ballet were ogled by their male audience members and often even expected to perform sexual favors for the male subscribers behind the scenes. Feminists and other advocates of women's rights have criticized such exploitation. The most often criticized aspect of the use of women in mass media is sexual objectification, but dismemberment can be a part of the objectification as well.
Porn studies is the critical academic study of pornography and its associated industry, typically in the broader rubric of the field of sexuality studies. Porn studies takes as its object of research pornography itself — its visual artefacts, cultural role, controversies, and influence on the public — as well as the manner in which pornography is researched. The development of porn studies as a field of academia has been driven by the publication of the same name.
Sexuality in the United States varies by region and time period.
Sexual themes have become prominent in the media, print advertisements, television, video games and other child-friendly mediums. Children are more likely to come across sexually explicit material online intentionally or unintentionally. The large quantity of explicit sexual content online increases the likelihood of young people to experience early sexual debuts or to have sexual experiences at a young age. Young people who frequently engage with explicit sexual content, that exhibits violent and objectifying themes, are more likely to imitate risky and violent sexual practices and to be more accepting of sexual objectification in society. They are also more likely to perceive other people's values and worth solely based on sex appeal.
Although some literature exists on traditional forms of media (e.g., television, radio, magazines), the empirical research that examines the impact on children of exposure to non-violent sexual material is extremely limited.