A study released today in the November issue of Pediatrics, links TV viewing habits of teens with a higher incidence of teen pregnancies. It is the first study of its kind. This groundbreaking research suggests that pregnancy rates are much higher among teens who watch a lot of TV with sexual dialogue and behavior than among those who have tamer viewing tastes. Sex and the City, That 70s Show, and Friends were the shows used in the research.
Previous research by some of the same scientists had already found that watching lots of sex on TV can influence teens to have sex at earlier ages. Shows that highlight only the positive aspects of sexual behavior without the risks can lead teens to have unprotected sex "before they're ready to make responsible and informed decisions," said Anita Chandra, lead author of the study.
The study involved calling 2,003 girls and boys between 12 and 17 years of age, nationwide. They were questioned about their TV viewing habits in 2001. Teens were re-interviewed twice, the last time in 2004, and asked about pregnancy. Among girls, 58 became pregnant during the follow-up, and among boys, 33 said they had gotten a girl pregnant.
Pregnancies were twice as common among those who said they watched such shows regularly, compared with teens who said they hardly ever saw them. There were more pregnancies among the oldest teens interviewed, but the rate of pregnancy remained consistent across all age groups among those who watched the racy programs.
Chandra said, TV-watching was strongly connected with teen pregnancy even when other factors were considered, including grades, family structure and parents' education level.
But the study didn't adequately address other issues, such as self-esteem, family values and income, contends Elizabeth Schroeder, executive director of Answer, a teen sex education program based at Rutgers University. "The media does have an impact, but we don't know the full extent of it because there are so many other factors," Schroeder said.
But Bill Albert, chief program officer at the nonprofit National Campaign to Prevent Teen Pregnancy, praised the study and said it "catches up with common sense." "Media helps shape the social script for teenagers. Most parents know that. This is just good research to confirm that," Albert said.
Psychologist David Walsh, president of the National Institute on Media and the Family, cited data suggesting only about 19 percent of American teens say they can talk openly with a trusted adult about sex. With many schools not offering sex education, that leaves the media to serve as a sex educator, he said.
"For a kid who no one's talking to about sex, and then he watches sitcoms on TV where sex is presented as this is what the cool people do," the outcome is obvious, Walsh said.
He said the message to parents is to talk to their kids about sex long before children are teens. Parents also should be watching what their kids watch and helping filter messages sex-filled shows are sending, he said.
Sources: American Academy of Pediatrics and the Associated Press
2008 by Avis Ward of
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