Buffer or Brake? The Role of Sexuality-Specific Parenting in Adolescents’ Sexualized Media Consumption and Sexual Development

Abstract

One main source of sexual socialization lies within family interactions. Especially sexuality-specific parenting may determine adolescents’ sexual development—adolescents’ sexual behavior and sexual risk behavior, sexualized media consumption and permissive sexual attitudes—to a significant extent, but different ideas exist about how this works. In this longitudinal study, we examined two hypotheses on how sexuality-specific parenting—parenting aimed specifically at children’s sexual attitudes and behaviors—relates to adolescents’ sexual development. A first buffer hypothesis states that parents’ instructive media discussions with their children—called instructive mediation—buffers the effect of sexualized media consumption on adolescents’ sexual attitudes and behavior and, vice versa, the effect of adolescents’ sexual attitudes and behavior on sexualized media consumption. A second brake hypothesis states that parents, by communicating love-and-respect oriented sexual norms, slow down adolescents’ development toward increased sexualized media use, permissive sexual attitudes, and sexual behavior and sexual risk behavior. Using four-wave longitudinal data from 514 Dutch adolescents aged 13–16 years (49.8% female), we found evidence to support a brake effect. More frequent parental communication of love-and-respect oriented sexual norms was associated with less permissive sexual attitudes and, for boys, with less advanced sexual behavior and a less rapid increase in sexual risk behavior. Parents’ instructive mediation regarding adolescents’ sexualized media consumption was associated with less permissive sexual attitudes at baseline, but only for girls. No systematic evidence emerged for a buffer effect of parents’ instructive mediation. In conclusion, although our data seem to suggest that parent–child communication about sex is oftentimes “after the fact”, we also find that more directive parental communication that conveys love-and-respect oriented sexual norms brake adolescents’ move toward sexual maturity.

A Comparison of the Process and Content of Sexual Communications Among African American Adolescent Children Living in Parent and Grandparent Headed Families

“…Although adolescents reported being embarrassed when their grandparents discussed sexuality topics with them the timing and repetition of these discussions are important. 33 If sexual topics are introduced by grandparents at age-appropriate levels and are spoken of more than once, then the adolescents may begin to feel more comfortable with the sexual communication process.…”

Birth Order and First Sexual Experience: Do Siblings Influence Sexual Debut in Adolescents?

“…While the family is likely to be the early developmental context in which norms and behaviors related to sexual activity are first learned, research has almost exclusively focused on parents (Grossman et al, 2016;Overbeek et al, 2018), potentially underestimating the important role of siblings as a source of intra-family influence (Elton et al, 2019;Killoren et al, 2019;Killoren & Roach, 2014).…”

Does Adolescent Media Use Predict Sexual Stereotypes in Adolescence and Emerging Adulthood? Associations with Music Television and Online Pornography Exposure

“…Ethnic background was measured in W1 by asking participants about their and their (grand)parents' country of birth (1 = participant and grandparents born in Belgium; 2 = participant or grandparents born in another country). As attachment and communication with parents have been shown to play a role in adolescents' sexual media use and sexual socialization, participants' communication quality with their parents (W1) was also added as a control variable (Overbeek, van de Bongardt, & Baams, 2018;Vandenbosch & Eggermont, 2012). A subscale of the Inventory of Parent Attachment (Armsden & Greenberg, 1987) was used, consisting of nine items including "My parents notice when I worry about something" and "My parents understand me."…”