Abstract
Purpose
Mass media play an important role in the socialization of youth. Given its expanding
nature and accessibility, the Internet may be at the forefront of this education.
However, the extent of the Internet's impact on adolescent sexual attitudes and behaviors
is not yet known.
Methods
A total of 433 adolescents completed an anonymous survey at a health center in New
York City. The cross-sectional survey assessed Internet accessibility, exposure to
sexually explicit Web sites (SEWs), sexual behaviors, and sexually permissive attitudes.
Results
Of the participants, 96% had Internet access, and 55.4% reported ever visiting a SEW.
Logistic regression analyses revealed that adolescents exposed to SEWs were more likely
to have multiple lifetime sexual partners (OR=1.8, CI=1.2, 2.9), to have had more than one sexual partner in the last 3 months (OR=1.8, CI=1.1, 3.1), to have used alcohol or other substances at last sexual encounter (OR=2.8, CI=1.5, 5.2), and to have engaged in anal sex (OR=2.0, CI=1.2, 3.4). Adolescents who visit SEWs display higher sexual permissiveness scores
compared with those who have never been exposed (2.3 vs. 1.9, p ≤ .001), indicating a more permissive attitude.
Conclusions
Exposure to Internet pornography has potential implications for adolescent sexual
relationships, such as number of partners and substance use. SEWs can serve an educational
purpose and create an opportunity for adults to engage adolescents in discussions
about sexual health and consumption of Internet material. Longitudinal research is
needed to evaluate how exposure to SEWs influences youth attitudes and sexual behaviors.
Keywords
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Article Info
Publication History
Published online: February 20, 2009
Accepted:
December 9,
2008
Received:
August 1,
2008
Identification
Copyright
© 2009 Society for Adolescent Medicine. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
