Gender and Sexual Risk

Two hypotheses are evaluated in thisinvestigation of gender differences in the attitudinaland behavioral correlates of sexual risk. Thedifference in magnitude hypothesispredicts that the same factors are implicated for women and men butdifferences occur in the strength of correlates.Alternatively, women may engage in sexual risk fordifferent reasons than do men, leading to adifference in pattern hypothesis. We compared these possibilitieswith a sample of 576 primarily White, middle-class,never-married college students, most of whom werebetween 17 and 25 years of age. Analyses of loveattitudes, risk perception, sensation seeking, and riskbehaviors in other domains in relation to sexual riskbehavior showed some gender similarities as well asdifferences. Findings were more consistent with the difference in pattern hypothesis than with thedifference in magnitude hypothesis.