Contributions of entertainment television to adolescents’ sexual attitudes and expectations: The role of viewing amount versus viewer involvement

Abstract

This project examines several ways in which television viewing might relate to adolescents ‘ sexual attitudes and expectations. Although previous findings have indicated significant associations between viewing amounts and various sexual outcomes, contributions of viewer involvement in this equation have been underemphasized. Drawing on the premises of several theoretical approaches, viewer involvement was defined to include viewing motivation, active viewing, perceived realism, perceived relevance, and identification. Associations were then examined between eight dimensions of TV viewing and seven sexual outcome variables for a multiethnic sample of 314 students aged 18–20. Both viewing amount and viewer involvement emerged as significant correlates of participants’ sexual attitudes, expectations, and behavior. In particular, greater exposure and greater involvement with TV's sexual content were associated with stronger endorsement of recreational attitudes toward sex, higher expectations of the sexual activity of one's peers, and more extensive sexual experience. When all the viewing factors were tested together, viewer involvement emerged as a more consistent predictor of the sexual outcomes examined, and these associations were stronger among females than among males.