Religiosity,Spirituality, Sexual Attitudes,and Sexual Behaviors Among College Students

The purpose of this study was to determine whether religiosity, spirituality, and sexual attitudes accounted for differences in sexual behaviors among college students. The sample included 960 college students enrolled at four northeastern colleges. Results indicated differences in sexual attitudes, religiosity, and spirituality by gender. Moreover, sexual attitudes, religiosity, and spirituality were associated with sexual behaviors among college students. Sexual behaviors among males were influenced by their sexual attitudes, religiosity, and spirituality, while for females, their sexual behaviors were mostly influenced by their sexual attitudes. College health professionals can use these findings when discussing sexual practices with students.     

Sexual Preference,Gender, and Blame Attributions in Adolescent Sexual Assault

ABSTRACT

The study investigated the impact of victim sexual orientation, perpetrator gender, and participant gender on judgements toward a 15-year-old male victim of a depicted sexual assault. One hundred and eight-eight participants (97 male, 91 female) read a hypothetical scenario depicting the sexual assault of a 15-year-old male victim where the victim's sexual orientation and the perpetrator's gender were varied between subjects. Participants then completed a questionnaire assessing their attributions toward both the victim and the perpetrator. Results revealed that male participants blamed the victim more than female participants when the victim was both gay and attacked by a male perpetrator. All participants, regardless of gender, made more positive judgements toward the female as opposed to male perpetrator. Results are discussed in relation to gender role stereotypes and homophobia.     

Verbal Sexual Coercion Experiences,Sexual Risk,and Substance Use in Women

Research has linked sexual assault, substance use, and sexually transmitted infection (STI) risk in women. Sexual assault by means of verbal sexual coercion (VSC) is more common than sexual assault by means of physical tactics, but VSC is rarely assessed independently. In addition, past work has established global connections among substance use, sexual assault history, and STI risk; however, assessing substance use during sexual behavior is less common. This study examined the relations among VSC, STI risk behavior, and substance use and attitudes. We hypothesized that women with larger numbers of VSC experiences would report more frequent sexual risk behaviors and substance use and attitudes. Participants with larger numbers of VSC experiences reported larger numbers of anal sex partners, more frequent penile–vaginal sex and sexual activity after substance use, and stronger sex-related alcohol expectancies. These findings suggest that VSC is associated with higher levels of STI risk in women.     

Associations Between Sexual Behavior, Sexual Attitudes, and Marital Horizons During Emerging Adulthood

Using a sample of 1,134 emerging adults, this study explores how the importance place on marriage, ideal marital timing, and criteria for marriage readiness varies by sexual experience. Sexual experience groups were created using cluster analysis techniques that incorporated both sexual behaviors and attitudes. Results from this study indicate that high rates of sexual experience were related to an increased personal belief that marriage is an important goal and a belief that being single holds more advantages over being married. Emerging adults with high rates of sexual experience were also more likely to believe that sexual experience and cohabitation are important criteria for marriage readiness.     

Sensual Enjoyment,Sexual Excitement,and Femininity: Appreciating the Female Sexual Response

We discuss the female sexual response with a recognition of the distinction between sensuality and sexuality and an account of the development of femininity; present an account of the sexual response of women as a varied but describable experience; and consider the successes and problems female and male therapists have in empathic perception of a woman's account of her sexual experiences.     

Perceived Physical Attractiveness, Sexual History, and Sexual Intentions: An Internet Study

This study was designed to examine the influence a potential date’s physical attractiveness and sexual history has on an individual’s intentions to engage in safer sex. Over 1,200 participants completed an Internet survey. The questionnaire presented a randomized biography and photograph and asked participants to rate their interest in dating and having a sexual relationship with the target. Participants were randomly assigned to one of six conditions based on the target’s physical attractiveness (low vs. high) and sexual experience (low, medium, or high). Results indicated that men reported greater intentions to have sex than women did, and all participants reported greater likelihood of having sex when the potential partner was highly attractive. Participants rated men and more experienced targets as more risky sexual partners, and the level of a target’s sexual experience was directly related to participants’ willingness to discuss sexual risks. Results indicate a continuing need to include discussion of cognitive factors in all HIV prevention efforts.     

Gender,Religiosity, Sexual Activity,Sexual Knowledge,and Attitudes Toward Controversial Aspects of Sexuality

The purpose of this study is to examine the role of gender, religiosity, sexual activity, and sexual knowledge in predicting attitudes toward controversial aspects of sexuality among Turkish university students. Participants were 162 female and 135 male undergraduate students who were recruited on a volunteer basis from an urban state university in Turkey. The SKAT-A Attitude Scale along with background information form, sexual activities inventory, and sexual knowledge scale were administered to the participants. Simultaneous multiple regression analyses revealed that religiosity, particularly attendance to religious services was the most significant predictor in explaining university students’ attitudes toward masturbation, abortion, homosexuality, pornography, and sexual coercion.     

Gender, Sexual Prejudice and Sport Participation: Implications for Sexual Minorities

Utilizing the compulsory heterosexuality framework, the purpose of this inquiry was to assess the influence of gender and sexual prejudice on decision-making within sport. In Study 1, responses from former and current athletes within the United States (N?=?229) indicated that prejudicial attitudes predicted unwillingness to participate when a coach was identified as gay or lesbian. A mixed-methods approach was used in Study 2 to assess the attitudes of American parents (N?=?76). Parent’s prejudicial attitudes toward gays and lesbians predicted unwillingness to allow a homosexual to coach their children; justification of which was most often based on negative gay and lesbian stereotypes. Implications for these findings are discussed.     

Masculine Ideology,Sexual Communication,and Sexual Self‐Efficacy Among Parenting Adolescent Couples

This study examined the relationship between traditional masculine role norms (status, toughness, anti‐femininity) and psychosocial mechanisms of sexual risk (sexual communication, sexual self‐efficacy) among young, low‐income, and minority parenting couples. Between 2007 and 2011, 296 pregnant adolescent females and their male partners were recruited from urban obstetrics clinics in Connecticut. Data regarding participants' beliefs in masculine role norms, frequency of general sex communication and sexual risk communication, and sexual self‐efficacy were collected via computer‐assisted self‐interviews. Generalized estimating equation (GEE) models were used to test for actor effects (whether a person's masculine role norms at baseline influence the person's own psychosocial variables at 6‐month follow‐up) and partner effects (whether a partner's masculine role norms at baseline influence an actor's psychosocial variables at 6‐month follow‐up). Results revealed that higher actor status norms were significantly associated with more sexual self‐efficacy, higher actor toughness norms were associated with less sexual self‐efficacy, and higher actor anti‐femininity norms were significantly associated with less general sex communication, sexual risk communication, and sexual self‐efficacy. No partner effects were found. These results indicate a need for redefining masculine role norms through family centered approaches in pregnant or parenting adolescent couples to increase sexual communication and sexual self‐efficacy. Further research is needed to understand partner effects in the context of a relationship and on subsequent sexual risk behavior.     

Gender, Sexual Experience, and the Sexual Double Standard: Evaluations of Female Contraceptive Behavior

The purpose of the present research was to compare men's and women's perceptions of female contraceptive behavior and investigate the relationship between sexual experience and these perceptions. One hundred forty-six predominantly Caucasion males (n = 76) and females (n = 70) were randomly assigned to one of three sexual scenarios in which a male provided the condom in a sexual encounter, a female provided the condom, or no condom was used. They were then asked to rate the female on several behavioral and personality measures and to complete a sexual experience scale. Results showed differences in the way men and women perceived the female target. A positive correlation was also found between sexual experience and more favorable perceptions of the sexually-prepared female.     

Contesting the Dominant Discourse of Child Sexual Abuse: Sexual Subjects,Agency, and Ethics

Responding to previous scholars’ call to explore the complexities of child sexual abuse (CSA), this article presents narratives of CSA and scrutinizes a binary construction underpinning this discourse of CSA, namely, the positioning of children as powerless and adults as powerful. The narratives belong to three Indonesian young people who have had sexual interactions with adults when they were children. The findings demonstrate how this binary positioning has been both drawn upon and resisted in the ways participants understand their sexual experiences. This article contributes to the existing literature by providing analyses of some vignettes of everyday experiences of how children might be constituted as sexual subjects, including their capability to exercise agency, perform resistance, and negotiate ethics. The implications of the findings are discussed in relation to how the recognition of children as sexual subjects and their sexual agency might be beneficial for parents, educators, and counselors.     

Sexual Arousal,Affect, and Heterosexual Attraction

Abstract

A study of residents who remained in the vicinity of Three Mile Island (TMI) immediately following the restart of the nuclear generating plant revealed that older residents employed a more emotion-focused coping style in the face of this event than did younger residents. Coping style was, however, unrelated to the level of psychological symptoms for these older residents, whereas demographic variables were related. Among younger residents, on the other hand, coping style was related to the level of psychological symptoms, whereas demographic variables were not. Among younger residents, emotion-focused coping was associated with more symptoms and problem-focused coping was associated with fewer symptoms, contradicting previous findings among TMI area residents.     

Prostitution,Sexual Autonomy,and Sex Discrimination

Feminist critics of the stigmatization of prostitution such as Martha Nussbaum and Sybil Schwarzenbach argue that the features of the practice do not, or at least need not, differ essentially from those of other more respected sorts of labor. I argue that even the least degraded forms of the current practice of prostitution remain objectionable on feminist grounds because patrons demand a semblance of sexual self‐expression that engages discriminatory beliefs about women's sexuality.     

Sexual Intimacy,Mental Illness,and Homelessness

The current article reviews the literature on sexuality among individuals with a severe mental illness (SMI) who have experienced homelessness, a topic that has received little attention in the research literature, particularly from a community psychology perspective. The review begins with a synthesis of the literature on SMI and sexuality, followed by a review of the available literature on SMI, homelessness, and sexuality. It concludes with an interpretation of the findings using community psychology values and principles. The findings highlight the importance of intimate relationships to recovery for many individuals with an SMI who have experienced homelessness. Policy implications for homeless shelters and housing interventions are discussed.