Perceived Peer Norms, Health Beliefs, and Their Links to Sexual Risk Behavior Among College Students

Previous research suggests that the Health Belief Model and the model of Pluralistic Ignorance are used interdependently to account for individuals\u27 engagement in sexual risk behavior (Wulfert & Wan, 1995; Miller & McFarland, 1991; Downing-Matibag & Geisinger, 2009). The present study investigates if health belief variables (i.e., perceived susceptibility, perceived severity, and perceived self-efficacy) moderate or mediate the association between perceived peer norms and sexual risk behavior among college students. Results did not provide support for health belief variables acting as a moderator or a mediator of the association between perceived peer norms and sexual risk behavior. However, the results indicate that perceived peer norms consistently predicted sexual risk behavior among college students. These findings underscore findings from previous research regarding how important our perception of our peers is, and how this perception may drive our own behavior