Teenagers and the Media: The Good, the Bad and the Sexy

With the rise of technology, social media, and media consumption, children and adolescents of the 21st century are exposed to more information and entertainment sources than any previous generation. However, with these advancements, the line between media directed towards adults and media directed towards youth has been blurred. For example, the Netflix television show, Riverdale, is a high-school drama series directed towards adolescents. In response, many parents have criticized the show content's appropriateness, specifically its themes of underage drinking, drug use, gun violence, and sex. The most controversial topic seems to be the show's sympathetic and graphic portrayal of an adult teacher and an underaged student in a sexual relationship (Common Sense Media, n.d.).

It is understandable why so many parents are concerned with how sexual content in popular media may be affecting their children's sexual development and well-being. Although parental restrictions on social media sites like YouTube offer some protection against exposure to sexual content, the vast sources of information in television, movies, and the internet are nearly impossible to filter completely. The public's consensus is that early sexual media exposure negatively influences youth behaviour and attitudes, but it remains unclear to what extent. So far, evidence has shown that unrealistic portrayals of sex in the media might contribute to risky sexual behaviour and expectations. However, sexual media may also offer benefits that are overlooked due to this popular opinion, such as the potential for sexual health education. The pros and cons of sex in the media continue to fuel the heated debate over its impact on youth. As a result, many researchers have raised the following question: is sexual media contributing to long- term sexual health and development in adolescence?

What are the negative impacts?

One of the most popular theories about sexual media is that increased consumption during childhood and adolescence correlates with earlier sexual behaviour and teen pregnancy. As per the social learning theory proposed by Bandura (1971), children learn behaviour by observing and imitating peers and adults. Therefore, watching adults perform sexual acts would consequently influence youth to do the same. Indeed, three longitudinal surveys found that adolescents who consumed more sexual content in media were more likely to initiate sexual intercourse after a 2-year follow-up (Collins et al., 2017). There is also evidence that sexual media also encourages unsafe sexual practices due to their unrealistic depictions of sex. Perry et al. (2019) investigated sexually explicit media as a potential influence on sexual risk behaviour in men who have sex with men. The researchers found that men exposed to sexual media earlier in their lives were more likely to engage in condom-less anal sex. There was a 3% increase in risk probability with every earlier year. With these results in mind, they suggested that exposure to sexual media may be a milestone in sexual development.

However, the theory that exposure to sexual media influences sexual behaviour in adolescents is highly debated. Steinberg and Monahan (2011) argue that sexual behaviour in adolescence is not caused by media exposure; rather, it is the adolescent's propensity to exposing themselves to it that determines their sexual activity. In other words, sexual media exposure does not lead to early sex; it may just be predisposing differences between adolescents. Nevertheless, whether there is causation or not, the correlation observed and replicated multiple times cannot be ignored.

In addition to immediate concerns such as risky sexual behaviour, excessive exposure to sexual media during adolescence may also lead to less satisfying sexual relationships in the future. This may be due to the development of unrealistic expectations about sex which carry over into adulthood. To be specific, a 15-year longitudinal study on adolescents and their viewing of sexual content on television focused on "sexual perfectionism," which is the expectation that sex is uncomplicated, problem-free and always satisfying (Vangeel et al., 2020). By viewing television shows directed to adults during adolescence, individuals were more likely to report lower sexual and relational satisfaction ratings 15 years later. On the other hand, adolescents who viewed shows directed to youth were more likely to report higher ratings. Thus, it can be inferred that viewing mature portrayals of sex during adolescence may lead to developing long-lasting sexual scripts and expectations and feelings of disappointment or shame when faced with real-life sexual experiences that do not meet the ideal.

Are there benefits to sexual media exposure?

The increase of sexual themes in media is not without its benefits. Despite the bountiful evidence that it is an overall negative influence, studies have shown that they are also good learning opportunities for youth. In particular, modern media provides a good medium to communicate information about safe and healthy sex. A meta-analysis studied the effects of new- media interventions on condom-use and sexually transmitted infection testing and found that interactive media interventions were the most successful for women and young people (Swanton, Allom, & Mullan, 2015).

Furthermore, entertainment such as television shows has been found to have positive benefits to sexual attitudes in adolescents. For example, teenagers between the age of 12 and 17 self-reported in a survey that watching the show Friends helped improve their knowledge about condoms and facilitate discussions about condom efficacy with their parents (Collins et al., 2003). Another study found that exposing youth to the negative consequences of sex in media led to more negative moral judgements of unsafe pre-marital sex (Eyal & Kunkel, 2008). This evidence suggests that sexual media can be beneficial to sexual health and development, but only if these depictions are realistic and contain helpful knowledge.

Conclusion

In summary, research has documented many downsides to frequent sexual media exposure in adolescence, including a higher incidence of unsafe sex and lower sexual and relational satisfaction. However, it is essential to note that these issues are most applicable to idealized media portrayals of sex. Realistic sexual depictions have had more positive effects and have demonstrated their potential for healthy sex education.

Despite these research results, movies, music, television, and other media forms continue to depict and encourage unrealistic sex to appeal to audiences. But demanding that the media stop showing sexual content might be counterintuitive, as it does not teach youth about safe sexual decisions and practices any better. Instead, it is in our best interest to encourage sexual discussion and de-stigmatize the uglier aspects of sex, such as STIs. Adolescence is a crucial period for sexual development; it would be impossible to stop teenagers from consuming sexual media. But if the media is going to show them sex, they need to show both the good and the bad.

Tiana Nguyen, 5th Year Life Sciences, Queen’s University

References

Bandura, A. (1971). Social Learning Theory. General Learning Press.

Collins, R. L., Elliott, M. N., Berry, S. H., Kanouse, D. E., & Hunter, S. B. (2003).                       

Entertainment television as a healthy sex educator: the impact of condom-efficacy information in an episode of Friends. Pediatrics, 112(5), 1115-1121. DOI:      10.1542/peds.112.5.1115

Collins, R.L., Strasburger, V.C., Brown, J.D., Donnerstein, E., Lenhart, A., & Ward, L.A. (2017). Sexual media and childhood well-being and health. Pediatrics, 140(2), 162-166. https://doi.org/10.1542/peds.2016-1758X

Common Sense Media. (n.d.). Parent Reviews for Riverdale. Common Sense Media. https://www.commonsensemedia.org/tv-reviews/riverdale/user-reviews/adult

Eyal, K., & Kunkel, D. (2008). The effects of sex in television drama shows on emerging adults' sexual attitudes and moral judgments. Journal of Broadcasting & Electronic Media, 52(2), 161-180. https://doi.org/10.1080/08838150801991757 

Perry, N. S., Nelson, K. M., Carey, M. P., & Simoni, J. M. (2019). Sexually explicit media exposure as a sexual milestone among gay, bisexual, and other men who have sex with men. Health Psychology, 38(1), 29-32. http://dx.doi.org.proxy.queensu.ca/10.1037/hea0000678

Steinberg, L., & Monahan, K. C. (2011). Adolescents' exposure to sexy media does not hasten the initiation of sexual intercourse. Developmental Psychology, 47(2), 562-576. http://dx.doi.org.proxy.queensu.ca/10.1037/a0020613