How Sources of Sexual Information Relate to Adolescents\u27 Beliefs About Sex

Objectives: To examine how sources of sexual information are associated with adolescents\u27 behavioral, normative, and control beliefs about having sexual intercourse using the integrative model of behavior change. Methods: Survey data from a quota sample of 459 youth. Results: The most frequently reported sources were friends, teachers, mothers, and media. Regression analyses indicated that learning about sex from parents, grandparents, and religious leaders was associated with beliefs likely to delay sex; friends, cousins, and media were associated with beliefs that increase the likelihood of having sexual intercourse. Conclusions: Different sexual information sources were associated with different underlying beliefs

Consumers’ Understanding of Privacy Rules in the Marketplace

Studies suggest the general structure of Web sites leads consumers away from demanding that online merchants take certain approaches to privacy as a condition for dealing with them. This article presents findings from a nationally representative survey showing that the absence of such a privacy marketplace can also be attributed to the public’s incomplete knowledge of privacy regulations. Most respondents correctly understood that regulations regarding merchants’ sharing information are domain specific. The respondents were only sporadically correct, however, regarding which domains have which rules. The study raises questions about the best approaches to education in the absence of a coherent national policy of privacy regulation

The Role of Parents in Problematic Internet Use Among US Adolescents

The internet has transformed the way youth communicate, learn, and network, with implications for their broader social, psychological, and physical health and well-being. With the technological capability of accessing the internet from anywhere, at any time, paired with the enormous variety of internet activities in which youth engage—from social networking to chatting to streaming videos to playing games to watching television content—instances of problematic internet behavior have emerged. We conducted an online national survey of 629 US adolescents ages 12–17 years old and a matching survey of one of their parents. We investigated the relationship between problematic internet behavior and parental monitoring, parental mediation of internet use, and parental estimates of their adolescent’s time spent using computers. Analyses showed that problematic internet use was associated with less parental monitoring and parental mediation and poorer parental relationships. Adolescents that spent a lot of time on the computer were also more likely to engage in problematic internet use. Although we cannot determine the direction of the relationships, results support the important role of parents in adolescents’ problematic internet use

Correlates of Sun Protection Behaviors in Racially and Ethnically Diverse U.S. Adults

Although skin cancer incidence is highest among non-Hispanic Whites, minority populations are often diagnosed with more advanced stage disease and are more likely to experience poor outcomes. Fewer people of color do not practice primary prevention of skin cancer according to recommendations, but public health education and interventions to promote sun protection behaviors have consistently targeted non-Hispanic Whites. This study examines performance of sun protection behaviors in a multiethnic sample and whether demographic, lifestyle and psychosocial predictors of these behaviors differ by race and ethnicity. In this study, a probability-based sample of 1742 adults completed an online survey in 2015. Main outcomes of interest included sunscreen use, wearing a sleeved shirt, and seeking shade. We stratified the sample into racial/ethnic groups (White, Black, Hispanic, Asian) and investigated demographic, lifestyle and psychosocial correlates of these behaviors in each group. Differences in adjusted estimates from each behavior-specific model were tested across strata. Racial/ethnic groups were significantly different in regards to sunscreen use and wearing a sleeved shirt, but similarly engaged in seeking shade. Results from multivariate ordered logistic regression models for each behavior revealed important demographic, lifestyle and psychosocial predictors and the importance of some demographic correlates varied between racial/ethnic groups. This study provides insight into the practice and correlates of skin cancer prevention among a multiethnic sample. Our findings suggest that targeting public health education efforts and interventions to promote sun protection in minority populations may be a beneficial approach to addressing heightened skin cancer morbidity and mortality in these groups

Social Media in the Sexual Lives of African American and Latino Youth: Challenges and Opportunities in the Digital Neighborhood

There has been significant interest in the role of social media in the lives of adolescents, particularly as it relates to sexual risk. Researchers have focused on understanding usage behaviors, quantifying effects of social media exposure and activity, and using social media to intervene. Much of this work has focused on college students and non-minority youth. In this paper, we examine the growing body of literature around social media use among US minority youth and its intersection with sexual risk behavior. We introduce the concept of the “digital neighborhood” and examine the intersection of social media and sexual health in two domains: 1) sexual content in social media and 2) evidence of social media effects on sexual behavior. Finally, we discuss the opportunities and challenges for researchers and practitioners engaging youth of color

Sex, Drugs, and Alcohol in the Digital Neighborhood: A multi-method analysis of online discourse amongst Black and Hispanic Youth

In the digital neighborhood, Black and Hispanic youth communicate their perspectives about a myriad of issues facing youth, including sex and substance use. This population of young people are also disproportionately burdened by negative outcomes associated with sex and substance use behaviors, even when their behavior is less risky. Given the increased likelihood of negative outcomes, we investigated how youth talk about these behaviors in their online social networks. This mixed methods study integrates a behavioral survey with a machine learning-supported, qualitative content analysis of one year of Facebook and Twitter posts from 50 participants, with feedback from a youth advisory board. Findings suggest that participants who drank were more likely to post about alcohol. Women posted more about STIs, HIV and pregnancy. Posts around sexual behavior often discussed trust in sexual partnerships and gendered views of sex. Alcohol and marijuana were used to relieve stress, to handle personal grief and community violence, and as a coping mechanism for general distress. Understanding how youth think about sexual risk and substance use can inform the design of more effective prevention efforts

Americans Reject Tailored Advertising and Three Activities That Enable It

This nationally representative telephone (wire-line and cell phone) survey explores Americans\u27 opinions about behavioral targeting by marketers, a controversial issue currently before government policymakers. Behavioral targeting involves two types of activities: following users\u27 actions and then tailoring advertisements for the users based on those actions. While privacy advocates have lambasted behavioral targeting for tracking and labeling people in ways they do not know or understand, marketers have defended the practice by insisting it gives Americans what they want: advertisements and other forms of content that are as relevant to their lives as possible. Contrary to what many marketers claim, most adult Americans (66%) do not want marketers to tailor advertisements to their interests. Moreover, when Americans are informed of three common ways that marketers gather data about people in order to tailor ads, even higher percentages - between 73% and 86% - say they would not want such advertising. Even among young adults, whom advertisers often portray as caring little about information privacy, more than half (55%) of 18-24 years-old do not want tailored advertising. And contrary to consistent assertions of marketers, young adults have as strong an aversion to being followed across websites and offline (for example, in stores) as do older adults. This survey finds that Americans want openness with marketers. If marketers want to continue to use various forms of behavioral targeting in their interactions with Americans, they must work with policymakers to open up the process so that individuals can learn exactly how their information is being collected and used, and then exercise control over their data. We offer specific proposals in this direction. An overarching one is for marketers to implement a regime of information respect toward the public rather than to treat them as objects from which they can take information in order to optimally persuade them

Relationships of Stigma and Shame to Gonorrhea and HIV Screening

Objectives. The purpose of this study was to assess the relationships between stigma and shame associated with seeking treatment for sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) and undergoing testing for gonorrhea and HIV. Methods. Participants were 847 males and 1126 females (mean age: 24.9 years) in 7 cities. Two scales assessed STD-related stigma and STD-related shame. Results. Rates of stigma and shame were higher among participants without a gonorrhea test in the past year and among those without an HIV test. Sex, age, health service use, previous suspicion of gonorrhea, and low levels of stigma were independently associated with gonorrhea testing. Age, enrollment site, use of health services, gonorrhea testing, and low levels of stigma were independently associated with HIV testing. Conclusions. Shame is part of the experience of seeking STD-related care, but stigma may be a more powerful barrier to obtaining such care