PEDIATRICS Vol. 117 No. 4 April 2006, pp. 1018-1027 (doi:10.1542/10.1542/peds.2005-1406)
Sexy Media Matter: Exposure to Sexual Content in Music, Movies, Television, and Magazines Predicts Black and White Adolescents' Sexual Behavior
a School of Journalism and Mass Communication
b Department of Sociology, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, North Carolina
c Pacific Institute for Research and Evaluation, Chapel Hill, North Carolina
OBJECTIVE. To assess over time whether exposure to sexual content in 4 mass media (television, movies, music, and magazines) used by early adolescents predicts sexual behavior in middle adolescence.
METHODS. An in-home longitudinal survey of 1017 black and white adolescents from 14 middle schools in central North Carolina was conducted. Each teen was interviewed at baseline when he or she was 12 to 14 years old and again 2 years later using a computer-assisted self interview (audio computer-assisted self-interview) to ensure confidentiality. A new measure of each teen’s sexual media diet (SMD) was constructed by weighting the frequency of use of 4 media by the frequency of sexual content in each television show, movie, music album, and magazine the teen used regularly.
RESULTS. White adolescents in the top quintile of sexual media diet when 12 to 14 years old were 2.2 times more likely to have had sexual intercourse when 14 to 16 years old than those who were in the lowest SMD quintile, even after a number of other relevant factors, including baseline sexual behavior, were introduced. The relationship was not statistically significant for black adolescents after controlling for other factors that were more predictive, including parental disapproval of teen sex and perceived permissive peer sexual norms.
CONCLUSIONS. Exposure to sexual content in music, movies, television, and magazines accelerates white adolescents’ sexual activity and increases their risk of engaging in early sexual intercourse. Black teens appear more influenced by perceptions of their parents’ expectations and their friends’ sexual behavior than by what they see and hear in the media.
Key Words: adolescents • mass media • sexual behavior • racial differences
Abbreviations: STI—sexually transmitted infection • SMD—sexual media diet • audio-CASI—audio computer-assisted self-interview • df—degrees of freedom • CI—confidence interval • RR—relative risk
Accepted Aug 13, 2005.
CiteULike 
Connotea 
Del.icio.us 
Digg 
Facebook 
Reddit 
Technorati 
Twitter What's this?
This article has been cited by other articles:
|
|
 |
|
  M.-L. Wong, R. K.-W. Chan, D. Koh, H.-H. Tan, F.-S. Lim, S. Emmanuel, and G. Bishop Premarital Sexual Intercourse Among Adolescents in an Asian Country: Multilevel Ecological Factors Pediatrics, July 1, 2009; 124(1): e44 - e52. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]
|
|
|
|
 |
|
 S. Dlamini, M. Taylor, N. Mkhize, R. Huver, R. Sathiparsad, H. de Vries, K. Naidoo, and C. Jinabhai Gender factors associated with sexual abstinent behaviour of rural South African high school going youth in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa Health Educ. Res., June 1, 2009; 24(3): 450 - 460. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]
|
|
|
|
 |
|
 B. A. Primack, B. Swanier, A. M. Georgiopoulos, S. R. Land, and M. J. Fine Association Between Media Use in Adolescence and Depression in Young Adulthood: A Longitudinal Study Arch Gen Psychiatry, February 1, 2009; 66(2): 181 - 188. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]
|
|
|
|
 |
|
 J. D. Brown and K. L. L'Engle X-Rated: Sexual Attitudes and Behaviors Associated With U.S. Early Adolescents' Exposure to Sexually Explicit Media Communication Research, February 1, 2009; 36(1): 129 - 151. [Abstract] [PDF]
|
|
|
|
|
|
A. Chandra, S. C. Martino, R. L. Collins, M. N. Elliott, S. H. Berry, D. E. Kanouse, and A. Miu Does Watching Sex on Television Predict Teen Pregnancy? Findings From a National Longitudinal Survey of Youth Pediatrics, November 1, 2008; 122(5): 1047 - 1054. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]
|
|
|
|
|
|
J. Peter and P. M. Valkenburg Adolescents' Exposure to Sexually Explicit Internet Material, Sexual Uncertainty, and Attitudes Toward Uncommitted Sexual Exploration: Is There a Link? Communication Research, October 1, 2008; 35(5): 579 - 601. [Abstract] [PDF]
|
|
|
|
 |
|
 J. A. Manganello Teens, Dating Violence, and Media Use: A Review of the Literature and Conceptual Model for Future Research Trauma Violence Abuse, January 1, 2008; 9(1): 3 - 18. [Abstract] [PDF]
|
|
|
|
 |
|
 C. Jackson, J. D. Brown, and K. L. L'Engle R-Rated Movies, Bedroom Televisions, and Initiation of Smoking by White and Black Adolescents Arch Pediatr Adolesc Med, March 1, 2007; 161(3): 260 - 268. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]
|
|
|
|
|
|
Committee on Communications Children, Adolescents, and Advertising Pediatrics, December 1, 2006; 118(6): 2563 - 2569. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]
|
|
|
|
|
|
S. C. Martino, R. L. Collins, M. N. Elliott, A. Strachman, D. E. Kanouse, and S. H. Berry Exposure to Degrading Versus Nondegrading Music Lyrics and Sexual Behavior Among Youth Pediatrics, August 1, 2006; 118(2): e430 - e441. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]
|
|
|
|
 |
|
 M. E. Schmidt and M. Rich Media and Child Health: Pediatric Care and Anticipatory Guidance for the Information Age. Pediatr. Rev., August 1, 2006; 27(8): 289 - 298. [Full Text] [PDF]
|
|
|
|
 |
|
 Sex Sells -- And a Whole Lot More Journal Watch Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine, June 9, 2006; 2006(609): 9 - 9. [Full Text]
|
|
|
|
 |
|
 Media Exposure and Early Sexual Intercourse Journal Watch (General), April 14, 2006; 2006(414): 5 - 5. [Full Text]
|
|
|
|
|
|
V. Strasburger "Clueless": Why Do Pediatricians Underestimate the Media's Influence on Children and Adolescents? Pediatrics, April 1, 2006; 117(4): 1427 - 1431. [Full Text] [PDF]
|
|
