Extent Matters: Exposure to Sexual Material Among Czech Adolescents. (November 2013)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Ševčíková, Anna; Šerek, Jan; Macháčková, Hana; Šmahel, David
• Other Names: Macek Petr guest-editor.; Vazsonyi Alexander T. guest-editor.
• Is Part Of: Journal of early adolescence. Volume 33:Number 8(2013)
• Page Start: 1048
• Page End: 1071
• Publication Date: 2013-11
• Subjects: Internet -- sexual content -- traditional sexual media -- early adolescence -- EU Kids Online II; Adolescence -- United States -- Periodicals; Adolescent -- Periodicals; Adolescence -- États-Unis -- Périodiques; 305.235
• DOI: 10.1177/0272431613483004
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 0272-4316

Abstract

Adolescents use media that exposes them to sexual material. This study focused on adolescents in the Czech Republic, a country with relatively high rates of exposure to sexual material (ESM). A sample of adolescents aged 11 to 15 years ( N = 495) taken from the project EU Kids Online II was examined for predictors of the following: frequency of ESM, place of ESM, and, for online ESM, the types of sites. The only predictors of sporadic ESM were age and excessive Internet use, while age, gender, sensation seeking, and excessive Internet use were predictors of frequent ESM. Age and excessive Internet use were predictors only of ESM online, while age, gender, emotional problems, sensation seeking, and excessive Internet use were predictors of ESM in online and offline environments. High ESM is linked to adolescent vulnerability and also to adolescent psychosexual development. The implications of these findings are discussed in this article.