Shaping Sexual Behaviors & Sexual Scripts
Pornography and the Sexual Socialization of Children
Full Article Name: Pornography and the Sexual Socialization of Children: Current Knowledge and a Theoretical Future
Open Access: No
Abstract
Academics and lay people alike have contended for decades that children view pornography and are affected by this exposure. Pornography studies that actually sample children are a new phenomenon, however. This commentary summarizes what we currently know about children’s exposure to pornography and the attitudinal and behavioral correlates of exposure. The author concludes with a call for research on factors that may moderate the effects of exposure and suggests that studies use the sexual script acquisition, activation, and application model of media sexual socialization as a theoretical guide.
Relevance
“Whether conducted in the USA or other nations, this emergent line of research indicates that many children view pornography and that the more children view pornography the more likely it is that they will express attitudes and engage in behaviors consistent with pornography’s representation of sex.” That representation includes unsafe or unprotected (condomless) sex, sex with strangers, “depictions of women as sexual objects who are subordinate to men,” and sexual aggression.
Citation
Wright, P. J. (2014). Pornography and the sexual socialization of children: Current knowledge and a theoretical future. Journal of Children and Media, 8(3), 305-312. https://doi.org/10.1177/0093650218796363