Watching Sex on Television Predicts Adolescent Initiation of Sexual Behavior

ABSTRACT. Background. Early sexual initiation is an important social and health issue. A recent survey sug-gested that most sexually experienced teens wish they had waited longer to have intercourse; other data indicate that unplanned pregnancies and sexually transmitted diseases are more common among those who begin sex-ual activity earlier. The American Academy of Pediatrics has suggested that portrayals of sex on entertainment television (TV) may contribute to precocious adolescent sex. Approximately two-thirds of TV programs contain sexual content. However, empirical data examining the relationships between exposure to sex on TV and adoles-cent sexual behaviors are rare and inadequate for ad-dressing the issue of causal effects. Design and Participants. We conducted a nationa