Attitudes Over de Seksuele Dubbele Standaard en Seksueel Risicogedrag.

Abstract

This study examined the relation between sexual risk behavior of adolescents and the attitudes of their parents and peers regarding the sexual double standard (SDS), and whether this relation is moderated by their cultural background. The participants included 259 Dutch adolescents between 16 and 18 years old. The attitude of parents and peers about the SDS was measured with the Scale for the Assessment of Sexual Standards in an online questionnaire. In this study the cultural background of the adolescent has been divided into two dimensions; individualistic and collectivistic. The hierarchical multiple regression analysis revealed that the parents with a traditional SDS attitude, were significantly related to a higher level of sexual risk behavior of the adolescent. However, the relation between the traditional SDS attitude of peers and sexual risk behavior was not significant. Results indicate that there was a significant interaction effect between the predictors parents/peers attitudes about SDS, cultural background and sexual risk behavior. The cultural background of the adolescent was not a significant predictor for sexual behavior, although the cultural background does moderate the strength of the relation between peers/parents attitudes regarding SDS and sexual risk behavior. It is therefore important that the attitude towards the sexual double standard is highlighted in sex education. Finally, it is valuable that sexual education becomes more culturally sensitive, which means that more characteristics of collectivist cultures must be taken into account.