Guilt and Anxiety Surrounding College-Aged Women in their Decisions to Behave Sexually

As our American cultural identity becomes more defined by sex and sexuality, it is critical to gain insights on the limits, restrictions, and motivations that women have felt or feel in their past/concurrent experiences regarding their initiation of sexual behaviors. Understanding that religion, friendships/relationships, personal morals and parental influence act as factors in this decision making, how do promises made prior to sexual engagement effect the manifestations of Sex Guilt, Guilty Conscience, and Sex Anxiety? Data and examination of interview records reveal a redefining of the self and a reliance on friendships to deal with conflicting emotions surrounding this decision while survey data shows that promises made in faith regarding sexual behaviors reflect significantly higher scores in Sex Guilt and Guilty Conscience. Promises to self showed no significant differences between those who did and did not promise on any of the measures used