A new study from Temple University is advancing a controversial finding about teens and sex. According to the study, which was led by Dr. Laurence Steinberg, teens who enjoy reading or watching sexually-explicit materials or having sex in their teens are not being unduly influenced by sex-saturated media images.
- Dr. Steinberg analyzed studies from 2006 which concluded that children who consume sexually-explicit media at higher rates than average when they are ages 12 to 14 years old are more likely to be sexually active by age 16 years.
- Dr. Steinberg analyzed the data in terms of the children's school performance, religiosity, parental relationships, and how they perceived their friends' attitude toward sex.
- "It may look as if the exposure leads to sexual activity," Dr. Steinberg said, "but the relationship between the two is artificial. If a child reports being religious, he or she will start sex at a younger age and will also be less likely to consume sexualized media."
Other experts were quick to disagree with the results of the Temple University study.
"Exposure to sexually explicit media in a young age can lead to a range of problems, including low self-esteem, eating disorders and sexually transmitted diseases," according to Vivienne Pattison, director of Mediawatch and the United Kingdom.
This study appears in the journal Developmental Psychology.
Labels: media_infuences, sex
Posted By: By Parents For Parents