A healthy dose of skepticism: The relationship between young adolescents' sexual media exposure and sexual intentions, and the moderating role of media skepticism.

Abstract

The relationship between sexual media exposure and adolescents' sexual attitudes and behaviors, including timing of first sexual experience, is well established. Research has emphasized the potential role of individual-difference variables in attenuating the potentially unhealthy impact of media on adolescent sexual health outcomes, and scholars have called for additional research in this area. Skepticism of media messages has been proposed as a variable that may serve as a protective factor against the potentially unhealthy effects of sexual media exposure on adolescent sexual decision making. However, this has yet to be explored empirically. Using a school-based sample of students in 9th- and 10th- grade (n=464, M _age=14; 55% female), this study examined the relationship between young adolescents' sexual media exposure and intentions to engage in sexual activity in the next year, and the potential moderating role of media skepticism. As hypothesized, greater sexual media exposure was positively related to intentions to engage in sexual activity in the next year. This relationship was moderated by media skepticism such that the relationship between sexual media exposure and sexual intentions was significantly weaker for adolescents' who were more skeptical of media messages. Implications for future research and interventions aimed at bolstering adolescents' critical media attitudes, including media skepticism, are discussed.