Sexuality and the media

American culture Sexuality is less accepted than violence

Why? Negative effects of sex –However, violence certainly has its negative effects “Puritan” morality –More apparent than real Belief in the innocence of children

“A TV network censored a sequence of John Steinbeck’s The Red Pony, which showed a mare giving birth, but broadcast the rather hideous sequence from The Godfather showing a beheaded horse.”

“We now arrive at what turns out to be— possibly through a kind of default—the most pervasive and consistent influence upon youth in the area of sexuality—the mass media.” –Internet campus

“Each year, a typical teen-ager views nearly 15,000 sexual references, innuendoes and jokes on television, of which fewer than 170 deal with abstinence, birth control, sexually transmitted diseases or pregnancy.” (CNN)

Television exposes children to adult behaviors, like sex. But it usually does not show the risks and results of early sexual activity. On TV, sexual activity is shown as normal, fun, exciting, and without any risks. Your child may copy what she sees on TV in order to feel more grown up. (American Academy of Pediatrics)

Source: Alan Guttmacher Institute

% who have had sex at 15 to 19 years

Source: Alan Guttmacher Institute

Teen pregnancy outcomes

Teen sources of sex information: ( Time/CNN poll, 1998 ) Friends45% TV29% Parents 7% Sex Educ 3%

Number of sex partners in past 12 months (adult %)

Frequency of sex in past 12 months (adult)

How often think about sex Source: Michael, Gagnon, Laumann, and Kolata

Percentage purchasing autoerotic materials in past 12 months

The nature of sex on TV Not explicit Innuendos are rampant Often occurs in humorous context

Who’s doing it? References to premarital and extramarital sexual encounters outnumbered references to sex between spouses by at least 6:1 (Greenberg & Hofshire, 2000) In soap operas, as high as 24:1 for unmarried v. married partners (Lowry & Towles, 1989) 32:1 in R-rated movies with teens (Greenberg et al., 1993) –Nudity occurred in all R-rated films in sample, with female nudity outnumbering male nudity 4:1

Trends 35% increase in sexual content in soap operas between 1985 & 1994 –(Greenberg & D’Alessio, 1985; Greenberg & Busselle, 1996) Also, more themes of negative consequences of sex, rejection of sexual advances, and portrayals of rape

Arousal Men are typically more aroused than women are, especially in response to sexually violent or dehumanizing materials –(Harris and Scott, 2002) Sexual violence may be especially arousing to sex offenders and other violence-prone men and even to “normal” men if the victim is portrayed as being aroused by the assault

Men and women differ in their response to sexual film Men and women usually differ in the intensity of their self-reported sexual arousal to sexual film clips, with women reporting lower levels. Also, men and women commonly report different emotional reactions to the presentation of sexual stimuli: Men report more positive and women more negative feelings.

Men and women were presented with 20 short film clips depicting heterosexual interactions. Half of the clips were previously selected by women; the other half by men.

FINDINGS: Although overall, men and women differed in sexual arousal to the sexual films, this difference was most pronounced for the male-selected film clips. Gender differences in arousal were small to absent for the clips selected by women. Also, men and women experienced higher levels of sexual arousal to clips selected for individuals of their own gender.

Arousal The degree of arousal is not highly correlated to the degree of explicitness of the media –Sometimes cutting away and allowing the individual to fill in the details with his/her own ideas is more arousing than witnessing explicit portrayals

Effects of exposure to weekly pornographic films Less satisfaction with the affection, physical appearance, sexual curiosity, and sexual performance of their real-life partners. Saw sex without emotional involvement as being relatively more important than did control group. They also showed greater acceptance of premarital and extramarital sex and placed lesser value on marriage and monogamy. Less desire to have children and greater acceptance of male dominance and female submission. –Zillman & Bryant, 1988

Male attitudes toward sexual violence Between 25 and 57% of college men reported that they might rape if they were sure they would not get caught. –(Check, 1985; Malamuth, Haber & Feshbach, 1980) Consumption of violent pornography, but not nonviolent pornography, predicted self- rated likelihood to rape (Demare et al., 1988).

Availability of pornography and sexual violence Research results are inconsistent High rates of availability of pornography and sexual depictions in Netherlands, Japan even though sexual violence levels very low Predicted pattern shows up elsewhere

Context Cultural context affects response to identical portrayals –National Geographic and bare breasts Expectations in addressing the text Conditions of exposure –With your friends, children, spouse

Portrayal of victims of sexual assault Malamuth (1984) found that men who viewed scenes of violent pornography showed a more callous attitude toward rape and women in general, especially if the women victims in the film were portrayed as coming to orgasm as the result. Men, though not women, were more aroused by a rape scene than a consenting sex scene, but only if the victim was shown as enjoying the rape and coming to orgasm. The men were not aroused if the woman was shown to be terrorized.

Effects of sexually violent films Participants who saw a film where a woman is attacked, stripped, tied up and raped, and enjoyed it administered more shocks to a female confederate of the experimenter, but not to a male confederate (who had earlier angered the subjects). (Donnerstein & Berkowitz, 1981) Participants with repeated exposure to sexually explicit media recommended shorter prison terms for rapists (Zillman & Bryant, 1984)

Exposure to pornography Exposure to pornography (especially violent pornography) tends to lead to acceptance of rape myths –(Allen, Emmers, Gebhardt, and Giery, 1995)

Slasher films College men shown one slasher film per day for a week –Filled out questionnaires evaluating the day’s film and some personality measures Over the week the men became less depressed, less annoyed, and less anxious in response to the films. The films were gradually rated as more enjoyable, humorous, and socially meaningful. They were seen as progressively less violent, offensive, and degrading to women. The violent episodes in general and rape scenes in particular were rated as less frequent.

Follow-up The participants in the slasher movie experiment later observed a rape trial. They rated the victim as less physically and emotionally injured than did a control group. (Linz et al., 1984) A similar study found that portrayals of a man raped by a man (Deliverance) and of a woman raped by a man (Straw Dogs) led to desensitization toward a female rape victim at trial among men exposed to the depictions but not to women. Exposure to depictions of male aggression toward men and women (Die Hard 2) and to a nonaggressive action film (Days of Thunder) did not have the same effect.

Brand recall was 17% higher for participants who watched a "neutral" program than for those who saw a violent show. And recall was 21% higher for viewers watching neutral shows versus a highly sexual program. What if you juice up the ads with sex and violence? Well, Bushman and Bonacci thought of that and found that it didn't seem to change the results. The violent ads were 20% less memorable and the sexy ones 18% less memorable than the neutral ads.

2007 YRBS Results Sexual Risk Behaviors

Percentage of High School Students Who Ever Had Sexual Intercourse, by Sex* and Race/Ethnicity,** 2007 * M > F ** B > H > W National Youth Risk Behavior Survey, 2007

Percentage of High School Students Who Ever Had Sexual Intercourse, 1991 – Decreased , p <.05 National Youth Risk Behavior Surveys, 1991 – 2007

Range and Median Percentage of High School Students Who Ever Had Sexual Intercourse, Across 34 States and 22 Cities, 2007 State and Local Youth Risk Behavior Surveys, 2007

Percentage of High School Students Who Had Sexual Intercourse for the First Time Before Age 13 Years, by Sex* and Race/Ethnicity,** 2007 * M > F ** B > H > W National Youth Risk Behavior Survey, 2007

Percentage of High School Students Who Had Sexual Intercourse for the First Time Before Age 13 Years, 1991 – Decreased , no change , p <.05 National Youth Risk Behavior Surveys, 1991 – 2007

Range and Median Percentage of High School Students Who Had Sexual Intercourse for the First Time Before Age 13 Years, Across 36 States and 22 Cities, 2007 State and Local Youth Risk Behavior Surveys, 2007

Percentage of High School Students Who Had Sexual Intercourse with Four or More Persons During Their Life, by Sex* and Race/Ethnicity,** 2007 * M > F ** B > H > W National Youth Risk Behavior Survey, 2007

Percentage of High School Students Who Had Sexual Intercourse with Four or More Persons During Their Life, 1991 – 2007 National Youth Risk Behavior Surveys, 1991 – Decreased , p <.05

Range and Median Percentage of High School Students Who Had Sexual Intercourse with Four or More Persons During Their Life, Across 35 States and 22 Cities, 2007 State and Local Youth Risk Behavior Surveys, 2007

Percentage of High School Students Who Were Currently Sexually Active,* by Sex and Race/Ethnicity,** 2007 * Had sexual intercourse with at least one person during the 3 months before the survey. ** B > H > W National Youth Risk Behavior Survey, 2007

Percentage of High School Students Who Were Currently Sexually Active,* 1991 – 2007 National Youth Risk Behavior Surveys, 1991 – 2007 * Had sexual intercourse with at least one person during the 3 months before the survey. 1 Decreased , p <.05

Range and Median Percentage of High School Students Who Were Currently Sexually Active,* Across 35 States and 22 Cities, 2007 * Had sexual intercourse with at least one person during the 3 months before the survey. State and Local Youth Risk Behavior Surveys, 2007

Percentage of High School Students Who Used a Condom During Last Sexual Intercourse,* by Sex** and Race/Ethnicity,*** 2007 * Among the 35.0% of students nationwide who had sexual intercourse with at least one person during the 3 months before the survey. ** M > F *** B > W National Youth Risk Behavior Survey, 2007

Percentage of High School Students Who Used a Condom During Last Sexual Intercourse,* 1991 – 2007 National Youth Risk Behavior Surveys, 1991 – 2007 * Among students who had sexual intercourse with at least one person during the 3 months before the survey. 1 Increased , no change , p <.05

Range and Median Percentage of High School Students Who Used a Condom During Last Sexual Intercourse,* Across 35 States and 22 Cities, 2007 * Among the students who had sexual intercourse with at least one person during the 3 months before the survey. State and Local Youth Risk Behavior Surveys, 2007

Percentage of High School Students Who Used Birth Control Pills Before Last Sexual Intercourse,* by Sex** and Race/Ethnicity,*** 2007 * To prevent pregnancy, among the 35.0% of students nationwide who had sexual intercourse with at least one person during the 3 months before the survey. ** F > M *** W > B, H National Youth Risk Behavior Survey, 2007

Percentage of High School Students Who Used Birth Control Pills Before Last Sexual Intercourse,* 1991 – 2007 National Youth Risk Behavior Surveys, 1991 – 2007 * To prevent pregnancy, among students who had sexual intercourse with at least one person during the 3 months before the survey. 1 No significant change over time

Range and Median Percentage of High School Students Who Used Birth Control Pills Before Last Sexual Intercourse,* Across 34 States and 21 Cities, 2007 * To prevent pregnancy, among students who had sexual intercourse at least one person during the 3 months before the survey. State and Local Youth Risk Behavior Surveys, 2007

Percentage of High School Students Who Drank Alcohol or Used Drugs Before Last Sexual Intercourse,* by Sex** and Race/Ethnicity,*** 2007 * Among the 35.0% of students nationwide who had sexual intercourse with at least one person during the three months before the survey. ** M > F *** W, H > B National Youth Risk Behavior Survey, 2007

Percentage of High School Students Who Drank Alcohol or Used Drugs Before Last Sexual Intercourse,* 1991 – 2007 National Youth Risk Behavior Surveys, 1991 – 2007 * Among students who had sexual intercourse with at least one person during the three months before the survey. 1 Increased , decreased , p <.05

Range and Median Percentage of High School Students Who Drank Alcohol or Used Drugs Before Last Sexual Intercourse,* Across 35 States and 22 Cities, 2007 * Among students who had sexual intercourse with at least one person during the three months before the survey. State and Local Youth Risk Behavior Surveys, 2007

Percentage of High School Students Who Were Ever Taught in School about AIDS or HIV Infection, by Sex* and Race/Ethnicity,** 2007 * F > M ** W, B > H National Youth Risk Behavior Survey, 2007

Percentage of High School Students Who Were Ever Taught in School about AIDS or HIV Infection, 1991 – 2007 National Youth Risk Behavior Surveys, 1991 – Increased , decreased , p <.05

Range and Median Percentage of High School Students Who Were Ever Taught in School about AIDS or HIV Infection, Across 35 States and 20 Cities, 2007 State and Local Youth Risk Behavior Surveys,

Percentage of High School Students Who Were Tested for HIV*, by Sex** and Race/Ethnicity,*** 2007 * Does not include tests conducted when donating blood. ** F > M *** B > W, H National Youth Risk Behavior Survey, 2007

Percentage of High School Students Who Were Tested for HIV,* 2005 – 2007 National Youth Risk Behavior Surveys, 2005 – 2007 * Does not include tests conducted when donating blood. 1 No significant change over time

Source: Bleakley et al.