Does Gender Play A Role?

Premarital sex was viewed as wrong when I was younger. It was the social norm to have sex once two individuals were married to each other. As I got older, I have noticed that individuals my age did not follow that norm to the point that it has become socially accepted today as normal behavior. On the contrary, my parent’s generation still view premarital sex as deviant since majority

Adhering to your religious and personal beliefs in a society where there have been generational shifts in attitudes toward nonmarital sex is challenging. These changes in sexual attitudes and behaviors are connected to growing cultural individualism in the United States. When a culture places more importance on the desires of the self and less on social rules, more relaxed attitudes toward sexuality are the almost inevitable result. You are faced with the decision of conforming to a society where the acceptance of premarital sex is at an all time high. Yet, your religion and personal beliefs have shaped your moral compass, which makes it evident that you do not wish to stray away from your decision of abstaining from sex until marriage. In efforts to assist you in effectively communicating your desires to your girlfriend we will evaluate your relationship through key communication concepts such as: culture, Social Exchange Theory, Social Penetration Theory, listening, and Self-Discrepancy Theory. .

There was once a time when premarital sex hardly ever existed, but that is not the case today. The age of individuals taking part in premarital sex is declining, and people are partaking in sexual acts at much younger ages. There is a highly unrealistic goal to encourage all Americans to abstain from sex until they marry (Finer 2). This is a highly unrealistic goal; the amount of people having premarital sex may lower, but getting all Americans to abstain is a nearly impossible goal. A 2002 survey showed that seventy-five percent of people aged 20 had premarital sex. The same survey portrayed participants aged 44 and it showed that ninety-five percent had sex before marrying. The survey showed that only around three percent of people abstained until marriage (Finer 3). Premarital sex also differs in the different sexes. Males were more likely to participate in premarital sex than women. This statistic is still common today. Premarital sex seemed to play a major role in relationships all the way back to the 1940s, it just depended on what age they did the act. By age 44, almost all people, if not married, had premarital sex (Finer 4). This is a social norm that seemed to stay relatively constant in American society throughout history. Not being abstinent is something that individuals have been accustomed to. It was socially

The Brief Sexual Attitudes Scale (BSAS) (Hendrick, Hendrick, & Reich, 2006), a 23-item questionnaire, was designed to measure multi-dimensional attitudes towards sex. The scale is a modified version of the original Sexual Attitudes Scale. For the current study, the Brief Sexual Attitudes Scale will be modified and shortened. The scale is made up of the following four subscales: Permissiveness, Birth Control, Communion, and Instrumentality. Some of the items refer to a specific sexual relationship, while others refer to general attitudes and beliefs about sex. Participants are instructed to answer questions with their current partner in mind. If the respondent is not currently dating anyone, he or she should answer with the most recent partner in mind. If the respondent has never had a sexual

In modern society as the idea of sex and relationships becomes more liberal the purpose of sex and relationships comes under further analysis. In what is really a matter of just under a century sex before marriage has transformed from a concept that was once expected to one which is rarely practiced and as the attitude towards single mothers takes a similar U-turn we are forced to analyse the purpose of such concepts. Nowadays by many, sex is seen more and more as a leisurely activity which is in stark contrast to the idea previously held where the purpose of sex was seen as purely for reproductory purposes. It therefore raises the question of whether we should have the

They see the overwhelming importance given to sexual attractiveness in the media-one study estimated that the average teenager ahs witnessed nearly 14,000 sexual encounters on television- yet they also hear their parents and religious advisers telling them that sex is wrong. As a result, many young people begin having sex without really intending to and without taking precautions against pregnancy.

This study must be considered with hesitation due to the small sample size, as well as the reality that certain generations and age groups may be more inclined to lie about having had sex or not than others. Around the same period, sex with prostitutes declined over 50 percent between 1900 and 1910. Due to the first sexual revolution of the twentieth century, young men were more likely to have their first sexual encounter with a girlfriend rather than a prostitute. This increased the need for the general population to have knowledge of and access to birth control methods. Margaret Sanger claimed in 1914 that upper-middle-class women, promiscuous girls, and prostitutes rarely become pregnant because they know how to prevent conception. However, lower middle-class women lack knowledge of birth control methods and it was cheaper to give birth than have an abortion even if they knew that they would be financially unable to care for the new child. During this time, sex manuals expanded couples’ knowledge of sexual techniques and greater access to birth control allowed couples to explore their sexuality further.

For years a double standard regarding premarital sex has existed not only in society. While it is believed to be acceptable for a male to participate in premarital sex, if a female was to participate in premarital sex she was often shamed. Although there has been significant movement in the acceptance of women’s sexuality throughout the last few decades, women still experience the double standards when it comes to engaging in premarital sex. Women who are more permissive often have to deal with unfavorable reactions from loved ones, future partners, and society. Thus, this can lead to feelings of shame, guilt, low self-esteem, and ultimately mental illness.

Human sexuality is defined as the capability of individuals to experience their sexuality and be able to express themselves as sexual beings (Hyde & DeLameck, 2006). Our interest in this topic is because with time, there has been a change in rules that control human sexual behaviour. The status quo in our contemporary society is much different as compared to an earlier state of conditions, and the change has, as a result, brought the evolvement in human sexuality. People 's view on virginity has changed greatly with a decrease of importance in regards to its preservation. Sexuality is essential to the economic, cultural, social and political organization of society or country. Our sexuality plays a fundamental role in all our lives regardless of age, sex or race. It forms a basic part of our personality and the decisions we make in what we do. One’s sexuality also consumes much of their time through behaviour or thoughts; at times every aspect of our lives seems to revolve around our sexuality. Studying sexuality is very important since human sexuality majorly contributes to social as well as personal problems. A lingering question concerning this topic is to what extent is virginity determined by the status quo and the rules that control human behaviour?

It has been almost thirty three years since the first federal funding was put to use in “. . . sex education programs that promote abstinence-only-until-marriage to the exclusion of all other approaches . . .” according to the article “Sex education” (2010) published by “Opposing Viewpoints in Context;” a website that specializes in covering social issues. Since then a muddy controversy has arisen over whether that is the best approach. On one hand is the traditional approach of abstinence (not having sex before marriage), and on the other is the idea that what is being done is not enough, and that there needs to be a more comprehensive approach. This entails not only warning against sex, but also teaching teens about how to have

Society has plugged information into young people’s mind for generations. This programmed, presumptive information has made youthful people, especially teenagers, and young adults think and act like robots. Buried deep in many teenagers thoughts ensued by their parents and society are the words, “No sex before marriage!”. Different people, have countless different reasons that they believe one should not have sex before marriage. Society, in lots of different places look poorly on those who engage sexually before being married. I’ve witnessed it happen more then once locally in my area, and its always ends with such a negative outcome. Even in schools kids are taught that sex is bad thing, and told not to engage in any sort of sexual activity. Rather then being taught about the importance of safe sex society is programing kids to just not have sex at all, especially in America. “Americans love to tout the value of waiting until marriage to have sex. We teach abstinence-only education in schools across the country, and even comprehensive sex-ed programs often point out that "abstinence is best."” (Jill Filipovic). People get married, most of the time, because the love each other but marriage is only a document. And when you love someone, you don’t need a contract to prove it. And you shouldn’t need a stamp of approval saying when and when you’re not allowed to be intimate with someone you love. Having sex before marriage should not be looked so poorly upon this day in age.

Statistics from recent studies suggest that only 13% of U.S. teens have ever had sex by the age of 15. But by the age of 19, seven in ten teens of both sexes have had sex. Between 1995 and 2006-2008, the percentage of teens aged 15-17 who had ever engaged in sexual intercourse declined from 38% to 28%. Among teens aged 18-19, it declined from 68% in 1995 to 60% in 2006-2008. The pregnancy rate among young women has declined steadily from 117 pregnancies per 1,000 women aged 15-19 in 1990 to 70 per 1,000 in 2005. However in 2006, the rate increased for the first time in more than a decade, rising to

The fact that media is blind to gender means that women and men are only perceived according to their interests. This allows us to realize that, with increasing frequency, women and men have similar interests - not that, as we've always thought, women have an interest in chick flicks and shopping. So, in that way, the fact that advertising is blind to gender means that women and men will be less likely to fit into the stereotypical personalities that are normally thought to be inherent of a particular gender, and women and men will become more liberated in the choices that they make about their own lives and interests.

(Barnett, 2017, 102) To summarize this, some people may feel pressured that their first time will impact the rest of their life. That same researcher focused on gender with virginity in a different article they conducted and indicated that “gender differences play a meaningful role in understanding sexual definitions”. (Barnett, 2017, 204) This article helped me to elaborate on my research question, and the subject of gender influence will be my main focus as I perform interview questions.

Over many years, the views of premarital sex have been becoming increasingly more tolerant. The whole reasoning behind why sex was created is lost in the minds of society and used for pleasure and own physical satisfaction. There are negative consequences for these actions leading to guilt, depression, and numbness to intimate relationships. Having strong parental influence can also strongly affect the outcomes of adolescence and causal sex. Additionally, marriage can be