Does Body Image Play a Role in Risky Sexual Behavior and Attitudes?

• NCJ Number: 214830
• Journal: Journal of Youth and Adolescence Volume: 35 Issue: 2 Dated: April 2006 Pages: 243-255
• Author(s): Megan M. Gillen; Eva S. Lefkowitz; Cindy L. Shearer
• Date Published: April 2006
• Length: 13 pages
• Grant Number(s): R01 HD41720
• Sponsoring Agency: National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD)
• Publication Format: Article
• Publication Type: Report (Study/Research)
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America

Annotation

This study tested whether risky sexual behaviors and attitudes were related to body image and whether the links differed by gender.

Abstract

The findings suggest that although increasing a person's satisfaction with his/her body is an important goal in dealing with low-self-esteem and negative emotions, for males this must be coupled with the responsible management of sexual behaviors and attitudes. For women, the cultivation of positive views of their bodies is likely to reduce risky sexual behaviors. For men, those who evaluated their physical appearance more positively, were less dissatisfied with their bodies, and were more oriented toward their appearance tended to be more sexually active, having more lifetime sexual partners. On the other hand, women who evaluated their appearance more positively were less likely to report engaging in risky sexual behavior. Regarding sexual attitudes, individuals who were more oriented toward their appearance, whether male or female, believed more in a double standard for the sexual behaviors of men and women. Males with more positive views of their appearance had less confidence in condoms' ability to prevent the transmission of sexually transmitted diseases and pregnancy; however, they did not perceive any significant barriers to condom access, and neither did women with positive body images. The sample consisted of 434 first-year college students (52-percent females) of diverse ethnic backgrounds. The variables measured were body mass index (weight in relation to height); body image; risky sexual behavior (number of lifetime sex partners, lifetime frequency of condom use, and lifetime frequency of alcohol use before or during sexual encounters); risky sexual attitudes (belief that men should have more sexual freedom than women); and attitudes toward condom use (importance of their use and ease of access to them). 4 tables and 49 references