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Young adolescents’ perceptions of peer sexual behaviours: the role of television viewing
Author(s) -
Eggermont S.
Publication year - 2005
Publication title -
child: care, health and development
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.832
H-Index - 82
eISSN - 1365-2214
pISSN - 0305-1862
DOI - 10.1111/j.1365-2214.2005.00525.x
Subject(s) - psychology , perception , developmental psychology , sample (material) , sexual behavior , chemistry , chromatography , neuroscience
Objective To investigate whether young adolescents’ perceptions of peers’ sexual activity is related to the amount of television viewing, and whether this relationship may be moderated by young adolescents’ pubertal development. Methods This study used a sample of 12‐ and a sample of 15‐year‐olds; 2127 respondents in a targeted sample of nine schools in Flanders (the Dutch‐speaking part of Belgium), completed a questionnaire with questions about their television viewing behaviour, the estimated prevalence of given sexual activities in peers, and self‐reports on pubertal development and sexual experience. Results In the sample of 12‐year‐olds, results demonstrated that a quadratic regression equation provides the best description for the relationship between television viewing and perceptions of peer sexual behaviours, indicating that the ‘effect’ of television only starts off after a level of about 45 h of television viewing per week. Further exploration showed that this relationship remains significant when controlling for gender and sexual experience, and is stronger at more advanced levels of pubertal development. In the sample of 15‐year‐olds, linear and unmoderated relationships were found. Irrespective of their pubertal status, gender, or level of sexual experience, television viewing is related to higher expectations of peers’ sexual activities. Conclusion Concerns about the impact of television viewing on sexual health should not be limited to older adolescents. This research has identified 12‐year‐olds who display a higher level of pubertal development and generally spend much time with television viewing as a category of viewers‐at‐risk.