Abstract In reviewing the literature of sexual attitudes and behaviors amongst college students, there is a lack of research on the evolution of sexual attitudes of students throughout the time they are in college. This paper proposes a four-year longitudinal study with 4,800 students from 48 four-year colleges in Illinois examining the changes in sexual behaviors and sexual attitudes, the beliefs and information that a person has towards a specific sexual topic, whether it is sexual orientation, gender identity, or sexual health. By studying the changing beliefs and behaviors of sexuality during a time when students first experience autonomy can increase the understanding of sexual orientation, gender identity, sexual exploration, and decrease …show more content…
Traditional gender roles have been gradually confronted in the recent decades with the rise of activism for the LGBTQ+ community. With that it seems as if the Millennial generation has started to become more accepting of different identities and has become more unwilling to label themselves than the previous generation. In their book Millennials rising: The next great generation, Howe and Strauss (2000) are creditied with dating the Millennial generation as those born in 1982 through 2004. Thus studies conducted with college students starting in 2000 is representative of the Millennial generation. Sexual attitudes are a person’s beliefs about certain sexuality influenced by many factors including culture (Abrams, 2016). A longitudinal study of 4 years will be done to analyze the progression of sexual attitudes and behaviors of first-year students throughout their experiences in college. The longitudinal design will allow for a complete analysis of developing sexual attitudes and behaviors from this community. Not enough research has been done investigating the gradual fluidity or rigidity of sexual behaviors and attitudes in students as a result of their experiences in college campuses. It is important to study this change in sexuality and attitudes to better reduce the beliefs of myths …show more content…
However, a study by Chivers, Seto, and Blanchard (2007) tested the genital response and subjective arousal of heterosexual and homosexual women and men when looking at same and different gendered sexual acts. Their findings were consitent with previous research in relation to women finding sexual acts more determinate of arousal than the gender of the actor whereas with men the oppoosite was true. Further research shows that women who identify as ‘mostly straight’ are more same-sex oriented in sexual attraction and fantasies than ‘exclusively straight’ women however, they are not as oriented as bisexual or lesbian women (Thompson & Morgan, 2008). Because of this it is hypothesized that women will have a more significant liberal change in sexual attitude than men since women do not show the rigidity in gender preference as men
Robin Dembroff argues that sexual orientation is determined by bidimensional dispositionalism (BD), meaning that ones sexual orientation is a result of their disposition to freely and naturally engage in certain sexual behaviors under normal conditions. The way Dembroff approaches the topic of sexual orientation allows for an openness in which heterosexuality is not the assumed normal sexual orientation and instead we solely characterize individuals based off of how they respond to and interact with others. To further clarify, under Dembroff’s concept, a lesbian woman would be grouped in the same category as a heterosexual man due to both being disposed to naturally gravitate towards women. One of the intended goals of Dembroff’s concept is
As stated in the book, “college students have much to teach about sex” (8). That is because the values, ideologies, and worldviews of the students are representative of greater American culture. Although flawed, hookup culture on American campuses hold the possibility of accepting a culture of inclusivity, care, pleasure, and freedom while also rejecting predatory behavior, racism, classism, and abuse. Dismissing hookup culture all together is blind to the reality that young adults are going to have sex, and since sex is non-negotiable, one’s aim should be to foster open dialogue and critical thought onto a future where everyone enjoys the ability to freely explore sexuality, sex, and gender on their own
Everyone has an opinion about sexuality education. From vocal parents at PTA meetings to state governors who must decide whether to apply for federal funding for abstinence-only-until-marriage programs or more comprehensive sexuality programs, or both, or neither. From school pri...
They base their findings on the National Health and Social Life Survey, which found that those born after 1942 were “more sexually active at younger ages” than those born from 1933-42, and the trend toward greater sexual activity among young people “appears to halt or reverse” among those born from 1963-72. In addition to these facts, an English survey of more than 14,000 students from 19 universities and colleges about their hookup, dating, and relationship experiences revealed that 72% of students experience a hookup at least once by their senior year in college, but hooking up hasn’t replaced committed relationships and is not a new concept to young adults. The evidence is convincing and shows that students often participate in both at different times during college (69% of heterosexual students participated in a relationship lasting at least 6 months by senior year as well.) Based on this, the amount of hookups and committed relationship by college students seems to even out over
As of today, there is a total of eight different types of sexual preferences including heterosexuality and homosexuality ("Overview of Sexual Orientations"). The different types of sexuality are absolutely clear to those who identify with them and have personally accepted them. What is interesting is how insignificant of a difference the multiple sexual orientations have between one another but defined as different types of preferences. The multitude of sexual orientations all acquire the same element, the attraction to another. Granted, sexual orientation is a person’s pattern of sexual attractions based only on gender ("Sexual Orientation & Gender Identity 101"). I questioned that if we removed gender from the equation could individuals look beyond a person’s preference and identify what qualities others may have in a person beside their
Myerson, Marilyn, and Steven Walfish. "Sex Role Identity and Attitudes toward Sexuality." Springerlink 9.3 (1980): 199-203. Google Scholar. Web. 2 Feb. 2012.
The term sexual orientation is known as the preference of one’s sexual partners, whether the same sex, opposite sex, or both sexes. Sexual orientation occurs when a child reaches the adolescent stages in life (Broderick & Blewitt, 2015). Adolescents activate their sexual orientation within four steps that create their identity. Adolescents are unaware of their identity at the beginning stages of sexual orientation. They work their way into the exploration stage by learning their preference of sexual partners. Once they are aware of their sexual identity, they will start the process of acceptance. Once acceptance is achieved, they will begin to integrate their sexual orientation into their lives (Gallor & Fassinger, 2010).
Milstein, Susan A. Taking Sides Clashing Views in Human Sexuality. Ed. William J. Taverner and Ryan W. McKee. New York: McGraw-Hill, 2009. Print.
Awareness is followed by exploration. The authors hypothesized that people in this phase would have strong relationships with or feelings for the same sex in particular, but will not necessarily involve exploration of sexual behaviors (McCarn & Fassinger, 1996). Exploration “is characterized by active pursuit of knowledge about lesbian/gay people, in terms of both the group as a whole and the possibility of one’s belonging in the group” (McCarn & Fassinger, 1996, p. 524). Participants were asked if they have explored their sexuality, and if so, how. Elise has explored her sexuality through various relationships, events/night clubs, and websites. Dominick has been in four romantic relationships, and six sexual relationships, all with men. Additionally, Dominick has made out with over 40 people, consisting of gay men, straight women, queer women, transgender men, and genderqueer individuals. He has experienced sexual attraction to women and non-binary individuals, which is why he prefers to label myself queer over gay. Sara is currently single, but has been in relationships with two men in the past. Sara has gone with some friends to a club that attracts a lot of LGBTQ+ individuals, but choses to stay with her friend group instead of dancing with people she does not know. Additionally, Sara admits that she has watched straight and gay porn before, but is turned on primarily by straight porn.
Perlman, D., & Sprecher, S. (in press). Sex, Initimacy, and dating in college. In R. D. McAnulty (Ed.), Sex in college. New York, NY: Praeger.
As a student enrolled in a particularly large state university, I am consistently exposed to numerous individuals who hold different belief and value systems that guide their lives on a daily basis. One of the most fundamental systems that people adopt is a religious belief, varying widely from the Atheist to the Buddhist to the Christian, and these beliefs have the potential to have a profound impact on many of the key elements of a human experience, one of the most important being the sexual experience. Researchers have long sought out relationships between factors of different religious beliefs and practices and their effect on the individual’s approach to sexuality, finding varying results (Ahrold 619).
In order to discuss the biology of gender identity and sexual orientation, it is necessary to first examine the differences between multiple definitions that are often mistakenly interchanged: sex, gender, sexual orientation, and gender identity. Sexual orientation is defined by LeVay (2011) as “the trait that predisposes us to experience sexual attraction to people of the same sex as ourselves, to persons of the other sex, or to both sexes” (p. 1). The typical categories of sexual orientation are homosexual, heterosexual and bisexual. Vrangalova and Savin-Williams (2012) found that most people identify as heterosexual, but there are also groups of people that identify as mostly heterosexual and mostly gay within the three traditional categories (p. 89). This is to say that there are not three concrete groups, but sexual orientation is a continuum and one can even fluctuate on it over time. LeVay (2011) also defines gender as “the ...
One of the most important steps that a person takes in their life can leave both negative and positive memories, pain and pleasure, and pride and shame. The subject of one's virginity is something that can be influenced by many paradigms of life. One researcher suggests, "Symbolic interaction theory suggests that anticipatory socialization is important in the transition from one developmental stage to another" ( Herold and Goodwin 109) . By this he meant that in sexual instances, when people socialize about the pleasantness of sex, this might motivate an individual to seek those pleasures therefore, making that person anticipate those outcomes. Keeping one's virginity may also be influenced by religion, peer pressure, peer surroundings, and sense of pride. Contrary to the belief that only adolescent girls are conflicted with their choice of chastity, more and more adult men and women are as well. A lot of people are putting off sex, and not because they can't get a date. They've decided to wait, and they're proud of their chastity, not embarrassed by it. Suddenly, virgin geek is giving way to virgin chic (Newsweek, October 17, 1994, p.59) Researchers have accumulated an extensive collection of articles based on the sexuality of adolescents, but yet have failed to really do extensive research on the reasons for these sexual choices of young adults. Because of this reason, I believe that the study the causes for virginity between people of all ages would not only be interesting, but substantial as well.
Gender and sexuality can be comprehended through social science. Social science is “the study of human society and of individual relationships in and to society” (free dictionary, 2009). The study of social science deals with different aspects of society such as politics, economics, and the social aspects of society. Gender identity is closely interlinked with social science as it is based on an identity of an individual in the society. Sexuality is “the condition of being characterized and distinguished by sex” (free dictionary, 2009). There are different gender identities such as male, female, gay, lesbian, transgender, and bisexual that exists all around the world. There is inequality in gender identities and dominance of a male regardless of which sexuality they fall under. The males are superior over the females and gays superior over the lesbians, however it different depending on the place and circumstances. This paper will look at the gender roles and stereotypes, social policy, and homosexuality from a modern and a traditional society perspective. The three different areas will be compared by the two different societies to understand how much changes has occurred and whether or not anything has really changed. In general a traditional society is more conservative where as a modern society is fundamentally liberal. This is to say that a traditional society lists certain roles depending on the gender and there are stereotypes that are connected with the genders. One must obey the one that is dominant and make decisions. On the other hand, a modern society is lenient, It accepts the individual’s identity and sexuality. There is no inequality and everyone in the society is to be seen as individuals not a part of a family unit...
Gender roles and identity are constantly shifting throughout different societal generations. Men and woman both have notable similarities and differences in genders and they each contribute to their personalities and actions. In the past men have been viewed as a more dominant sex in society over women, both in careers, home life, and sexually, however, today women have bridged many of the gaps and society is accepting a more equal view of genders. The following examines the similarities and differences between men and woman by looking at biological characteristics, gender roles, and sexual responses.