Abstract
Objectives: This study tests the following 3 hypotheses: (1) there is a direct association between consumption of sexually explicit media (SEM) depicting non-condom use and sexually transmitted infection (STI)-related sexual risk behavior among men who have sex with men (MSM); (2) the association between SEM consumption and STI-related sexual risk behavior is mediated by men's sexual self-esteem; and (3) the relationship between SEM consumption and sexual risk behavior is mediated by condom use self-efficacy. Methods: A cross-sectional, Internet-based survey on exposure to SEM and sexual behavior of 1,391 MSM in the United States was conducted in 2011. Results: The results confirmed Hypotheses 1 and 3, while Hypothesis 2 was rejected. Accordingly, a significant association between the use of SEM picturing condom use and STI-related sexual risk behavior among MSM was found. Likewise, we found that the association between the use of SEM and sexual risk behavior was mediated by condom use self-efficacy in an indirect path. However, SEM did not influence sexual risk behavior via sexual self-esteem. Conclusions: To promote STI prevention, the actors in SEM may be used as role models in managing condom use in sexual contexts.
| Original language | English (US) |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 13-24 |
| Number of pages | 12 |
| Journal | International Journal of Sexual Health |
| Volume | 26 |
| Issue number | 1 |
| DOIs | |
| State | Published - Jan 2014 |
Bibliographical note
Funding Information:“Understanding Effects of Web-Based Me dia on Virtual Populations” was funded by the National Institutes of Mental Health Center for Medical Health Research on AIDS, Grant # 5R01MH087231. All research was carried out with the approval of the University of Minnesota Institutional Review Board, Study #0906S68801.
Keywords
- MSM
- SEM
- condom self-efficacy
- pornography
- sexual risk behavior
- sexual self-esteem
