Literature Review In the United States today, one of the biggest problems health experts face is the growing amount of STD rates. This has become one of the largest health concerns in the United States, especially among young adults. There are many possible causes of high STD rates in the United States such as acculturalization in American society, amount of sexual health information available, media vehicles used to deliver sexual health campaigns, perceived self-efficacy, and media influence on younger audiences. Health specialists need to discover the main sources of the problems of STDs, so that they can discover new and more effective ways to reach out to audiences. If health experts become more knowledgeable about the issues causing …show more content…
the problems of the growing rates, then they can better construct more effective health campaigns with those issues in mind. In American culture, sexual intercourse and sexual health topics are rarely openly discussed among individuals. Conversations about sex usually take place in a private or intimate setting, although sometimes the topic is avoided entirely (Secor-Turner et al., 2011, p. 489). These topics are often found to be uncomfortable and embarrassing for many people because of the way American culture has constructed talking about sex (Rittenour & Booth-Butterfield, 2006, p. 57). This could partially be due to religious views, personal opinions about under what conditions it is appropriate to have sex, and fear of social stigmas associated with sex. Conversations between parents and adolescents or even between peers could also be hindered because of the negative feelings associated with talking about sex (Peter & Valkenburg, 2010, p. 357). Often times, young adults get their information about health issues by talking to parents, older siblings, or even friends. However, this may not be the case when discussing health problems related to sex because adolescents are too uncomfortable or feel awkward discussing these topics with parents and peers. The negative connotations already associated with sex can cause multiple problems because adolescents may not talk to those who could help educate them on sexual health if they have questions that need to be answered. This could very well be one of the reasons why adolescents are not educated enough about STD contraction, prevention, and treatment options. It could also explain why many adolescents are turning to other sources to gain information such as various media vehicles like TV programs and the Internet, to learn more about sexual health (Jones & Biddlecom, 2011, p. 112). There is an urgent need to find the best possible ways to reach out to audiences so they can be better educated about sexual health. It is also important to make known the various information outlets that are made available to young adults if they have questions or concerns about sexual health (Pinkelton et al., 2008, p. 462). There is also a strong need to discover why information about sexual health may be limited and not easily accessible to adolescents or young adults. It is crucial to discover the most common media vehicles young adults, especially college students engage in daily, in order to figure out where the health campaigns should be promoted. The media has a huge responsibility in providing information to the public about numerous health care issues.
Media can be a very powerful tool when attempting to provide information to young adults about sexual health. Young adults must be educated about sexual health concerns in order to make good decisions when engaging in sexual activities, so they can better protect themselves and other sexual partners they encounter (Noar et al., 2006, p. 165). Media can strengthen the power they have to educate individuals by using the most popular and up to date media vehicles available. These media outlets have the potential to reach many young adults, because in this day in age, the younger generation is engaged in all kinds of media daily. Social media especially, would be a great way to promote sexual health campaign ads because the target audience could be reached on a larger spectrum. However, there are often times many boundaries that can interfere with health experts being able to effectively run campaigns related to sexual …show more content…
health. Possible boundaries that could interfere with sexual health campaigns could be religious issues, age of audience receiving the message, and the setting of where the campaign is being promoted, such as inside or outside of an education setting. Many religious groups and particular individuals do not believe in contraceptive methods when engaging in sex, so this could become a challenge when reaching out to religious audiences. The age of the audience can also interfere with the intended message of the campaign because parents may feel certain advertisements about sexual health could potentially encourage adolescents to have sex, if they are educated on how to engage in sex in a safe manner (Moyer-Guse, 2010, p. 180). Lastly, educational institutions may not always support sexual health campaigns because they feel it takes the focus away from learning scholastic material, and instead emphasizes a focus on engaging in sexual activity. It is important to figure out ways to make information more accepted by critics of sexual health campaigns, and how information can be more easily accessible. This poses quite a challenge for health experts creating campaigns, but these boundaries can be better understood if we examine the American culture’s view on sex. It is important to examine our cultural outlook on sex, and how that can be greatly shaped by the media content we engage in daily. Media content found in music and TV programming often take practicing safe sex very lightly (Williams, 2012, p. 21). For example, many common themes emerge when examining lyrics in music and reality TV shows such as the Jersey Shore. Many of the themes include having one night stands, having multiple sex partners, rarely discuss contraceptive methods, and show little concern about contracting STDs or preventing pregnancies (Bond & Drogos, 2014, p. 102). Also, engaging in activities such as drinking or doing drugs are modeled as a positive form of behavior in a lot of media content. These types of negative health behaviors can heighten the chance of engaging in risky behaviors, such as engaging in unsafe sex. It is important to recognize that many viewers engage in these types of media content because they have favorite characters found in TV programming or have favorite music artists they identify with. This could be another source of the growing problem of STD rates, because it shows how viewers may model behavior of characters and artists they closely identify with. The Social Learning Theory and Modeling Theory explain how people adopt new behaviors by observing others perform behaviors, either in real life or through the content of mass media. Media that is based around sexual content can very well frame viewers’ perceptions of how they should practice safe sex, and their attitudes towards sex in general. For example, if a viewer identifies with a character on a TV program that does not practice safe sex, then the viewer may be more inclined to not practice safe sex as well (Moyer-Guse et al., 2011, p. 387). The influence media could possibly have over the viewer could aid in the problem of growing STD rates in the United States. However, if TV programs are changed in the way that characters discuss sexual health, contraceptive methods, and protection against unplanned pregnancies, then viewers may be more encouraged to model the positive behavior of characters they identify with, and practice safe sex. This could ultimately help lower the rates of STDs, and provides more support of the idea that there is a correlation with media exposure and the influence characters have on many viewers behavior. There is a great significance of this study because it is essential to find a solution to reduce the growing amount of STD rates in the United States.
This study can help provide a large outlook on numerous problems that could possibly be aiding in the growing rates of STDs. There are many aspects that need to be examined and noted for being possible sources of the problem. Health message constructers should be aware of the various “bumps in the road” they could run into when constructing health messages. Having a better understanding of these hurdles with allow them to construct more effective sexual health related messages and campaigns. Finding out the most popular media vehicles used by today’s younger generation, such as college students, will help aid in where the campaigns should be promoted. This will help reach the largest target audience possible. Discovering new ways to better provide information about sexual health and make it more accepted in educational institutions, will also help reach a larger audience. Lastly, examining the way media has the power to influence individuals and their behaviors will help pave the way to changing views about sex and healthy sexual
behaviors. It has been supported in frequent studies that media has a strong effect and significant influence on audience attitudes and beliefs. It is vital that TV programmers take these findings into consideration, and think of better ways to construct how characters deal with sex, STDs, and pregnancies. This study will bring to light many new aspects of improving health messages in the media, and the various vehicles messages can be delivered to the audience. I hope this study will bring interesting discoveries to the surface so that new ways of improving health messages could be considered for future research.
We hear sayings everyday such as “Looks don’t matter; beauty is only skin-deep”, yet we live in a decade that contradicts this very notion. If looks don’t matter, then why are so many women harming themselves because they are not satisfied with how they look? If looks don’t matter, then why is the media using airbrushing to hide any flaws that one has? This is because with the media establishing unattainable standards for body perfection, American Women have taken drastic measures to live up to these impractical societal expectations. “The ‘body image’ construct tends to comprise a mixture of self-perceptions, ideas and feelings about one’s physical attributes. It is linked to self-esteem and to the individual’s emotional stability” (Wykes 2). As portrayed throughout all aspects of our media, whether it is through the television, Internet, or social media, we are exploited to a look that we wish we could have; a toned body, long legs, and nicely delineated six-pack abs. Our society promotes a body image that is “beautiful” and a far cry from the average woman’s size 12, not 2. The effects are overwhelming and we need to make more suitable changes as a way to help women not feel the need to live up to these unrealistic standards that have been self-imposed throughout our society.
...ers, Kim. Sexual Teens, Sexual Media: Investigating Media’s Influence on Adolescent Sexuality. Mahwah, New Jersey: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, 2002.
Since the HIV/AIDS epidemic began in the U.S. in the early 1980s the issue of sex education for American youth has had the attention of the nation. There are about 400,000 teen births every year in the U.S, with about 9 billion in associated public costs. STI contraction in general, as well as teen pregnancy, have put the subject even more so on the forefront of the nation’s leading issues. The approach and method for proper and effective sex education has been hotly debated. Some believe that teaching abstinence-only until marriage is the best method while others believe that a more comprehensive approach, which includes abstinence promotion as well as contraceptive information, is necessary. Abstinence-only program curriculums disregard medical ethics and scientific accuracy, and have been empirically proven to be ineffective; therefore, comprehensive sex education programs which are medically accurate, science-based and empirically proven should be the standard method of sex education for students/children in the U.S.
Wright, Paul. "Sexual Socialization Messages in Mainstream Entertainment Mass Media: A Review and Synthesis." Academic Search Complete. EBSCO. Web. 24 Jan. 2012.
Have you ever noticed walking into a large shopping complex and seeing children as young as 6 years old wearing midriff bearing t-shirts and short skirts? And wondered to yourself why the younger generation of today portray themselves like that and why their parents allow it. It all goes back to the strong impact that sexualization portrayed in media and marketing has on everybody in today’s society especially young children from toddlers to late teens, both girls and boys. They see it everywhere from movies/television shows, magazines, clothing, computer games, toys, the music industry and of course the internet.
During the 1980s, efforts increased to alert the public to the dangers of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), other sexually transmitted diseases (STDs), and unintended pregnancy, yet these problems have increased. Adolescents and young adults have been especially hard hit. Pregnancy and birth rates among teenagers are at their highest levels in two decades.
The media is a large part of our everyday lives; everywhere we go we can find a source of media. It influences our thoughts, feelings and behaviours every day as it is a huge influence in today’s society. Society heavily relies on the media to show them what is in the norm and what is going on in the world. The media also serves as another way to display the normative of the society. Sexuality is a big part in the media and what is appropriate sexuality. The media negatively affects the people who do not fit society’s ideal normative. This includes people with a sexuality that is not the normative of heterosexuality. In the media, these people of other sexualities are excluded and made to feel they do not fit into society. My pyramid shows how society classifies people by their sexuality in the media. This involves highlighting the normative sexuality and excluded any other sexuality from the mainstream media.
Brown, J. D., Steele, J. R., & Walsh-Childers, K. (2002). SEXUAL TEENS, SEXUAL MEDIA: Investigating Media’s Influence on Adolescent Sexuality. New Jersey: LAWRENCE ERLBAUM ASSOCIATES, PUBLISHERS.
Today it is no longer a novelty to hear that teenagers are having sex. However, while this “bedroom” activity may be fun, there are now ample reports indicating that rates of sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) in teenagers have skyrocketed. Current data reveal that nearly 25% of adolescent girls who have sex are infected with one of the four commonly sexually transmitted infections-namely gonorrhea, chlamydia, herpes and HIV (Kann et al, 2015). Nationally, the prevalence of STDs account for 50% of cases in people under the age of 25. While every ethnic and race has been known to be affected, African American youth are disproportionately affected. These data are not a surprise to professionals who are engaged in adolescent sexual health because the numbers have been slowly creeping up over the decades, despite national educational policies to counter the threat of STDs (Sales & DiClemente, 2016). All the STDs have a significant impact on sexual and reproductive health, if they are mot promptly diagnosed and treated. Although many preventive strategies have been implemented in all communities, the rates of STDs are still increasing (Madkour et al, 2016).
Not surprisingly the lack of useful sexual information is one of the reasons of the spreading sex related diseases. According to The American Social Health Association (1998) each year there are near ten million of new cases of sexually transmitted diseases among the teenage...
Research Questions and/or Hypotheses The research question and basis of the study can be summarized as whether or not the exposure to sexual concepts through the media have significant influences on the sexual practices of teenagers. Similarly, it is proposed that, if proven to be accurate, media can be used in similar formats to encourage safe sex and preventative sexual health practices. The use of focus groups, journal writings, room tours, and interviews allowed teens the opportunity to discuss sexuality which was operationalized as teen views on love, sex, and relationships. Steele, 1999, p. 334.
Technology and things like social media have a great effect on sexual views, behavior and practice among generations. Recent advances in technology are influencing sexual behaviors because of things like computers, smartphones, sex technology (sex toys, pornography, etc.). The list is growing and so are the many possible uses of these technologies. In fact, one in every ten websites is a pornography website, (Krotoski, 2011). This alone gives individuals access to the erotic, fantasy world of sex. These advances in technology, and the availability of this information has made it easier than ever to enter the world of sex.
STI’s are a large problem across the globe. The age group with the highest rates of STI’s are ages 15-24, meaning high school and college aged students are at the highest risk. Sex education is offered at most high schools and colleges in some form. Education differs between countries based on social culture and religious norms. It is a global issue across the world of whether sex education should be taught in schools, how in-depth these discussions should go and how early they should be introduced. By addressing this problem on a global perspective, we can compare programs to determine the most effective approach.
The glamorous side of sex is everywhere; music, tv shows, movies and social media. To a mature adult, it is easy to ignore the sexual messages in those outlets. However, to a teenager, going through mental and physical changes and peer pressure, it is extremely easy to fall for what is shown to “cool.” Everyone has fallen for half truths to be cool in their teenage life. It just so happens that teen pregnancies and STDs are not one of those things that one can simply walk away from. Babies and STDs leave a lasting effect on everyone involved. The National Conference of State Legislatures states:
Martinez, Gladys, Joyce Abma, and Casey Copen. “Educating Teenagers About Sex In The United States”. CDC.GOV. Center of Disease Control and Prevention, 15 Sept. 2010. Web. 09 Feb.2014