Ilsa L. Lottes

The impact of college experience on political and social attitudes

In the last two decades a considerable volume of research has focused on how the college experience affects students. The purpose of the research reported here was to investigate to what extent students (predominantly Caucasian) at a highly selective university on the East coast changed their political and social attitudes during college. In particular, the influences of religious background, gender, membership in a fraternity or sorority, and time in college on attitudes were examined. Results indicated that students as seniors scored higher on measures of liberalism, social conscience, homosexuality tolerance and feminist attitudes and lower on male-dominant attitudes than they did as first year students. Given the lack of previous studies of change in attitudes toward homosexuality in college and the current political debate about issues relating to sexual orientation, an important finding was the substantial increase in tolerance of homosexuality by all subgroups. Results are discussed with respect to the special characteristics and potential influence of Ivy League students.

Sexual Socialization Differences by Gender, Greek Membership, Ethnicity, and Religious Background

Socialization theories have included parents and peers as important determinants of the initial sexual standards and sexual behavior of teenagers and young adults. The purpose of the research reported here was to examine how parental and peer sexual socialization influences are related to gender, ethnicity, religious background, and college membership in a fraternity or sorority. A sample that included a majority of Caucasian university students and about 13% Asian and 7% Black students completed questionnaires both as entering first-year students and as seniors. Results indicated that compared to women, men continue to experience a more permissive sexual socialization from both parents and peers. Greek membership was associated with a more permissive socialization from peers but not parents. Asian students reported a more restrictive socialization than Blacks or Caucasians. Findings are discussed with respect to concerns of social scientists regarding the influence of fraternities and differential gender socialization.

Sexual Coercion Among University Students: A Comparison of the United States and Sweden

Sociocultural theorists, including feminist theorists, propose that the prevalence of sexual coercion in a society is related to male dominance in the social structure and a culture that sustains it. Other theorists also propose that the prevalence of sexual coercion is directly related to the general level of violence in a society. Numerous studies support the views that women in Sweden have more institutional power and social benefits than do women in the United States, the double standard of sexuality is weaker in Sweden than in the United States, and levels of violent crime and types of interpersonal violence are lower in Sweden. In the research reported here, we examined factors associated with, and differences in, the prevalence of sexual coercion among a sample of students at a university in Sweden (N = 570) and one in the United States (N = 407). U.S. university students reported higher rates of both physical and nonphysical sexual coercion than did Swedish university students. These findings are ...

Swedish or American heterosexual college youth: Who is more permissive?

Theories of human sexuality have proposed that two factors reduce the double standard of sexuality and lead to a convergence of male and female sexual behavior: the degree of social benefits and amount of power women have in basic societal institutions and the extent to which a society accepts permissive sexual norms. As these factors increase, the strength of the double standard will decrease and the convergence between male and female behaviors will increase. Compared to the United States, Sweden has instituted more policies to promote gender equality and has been thought to accept more permissive premarital sexual attitudes. The focus of the research reported here is to examine country and gender differences in sexual attitudes and sexual behavior for a sample of university students in the United States (N = 407) and Sweden (N = 570). Results indicate that Swedish students endorsed more similar sexual standards for women and men and reported more accepting attitudes than did American students. For sexual behavior, American men reported the most sexual experience, Swedish men the least, with the women of both countries generally in the middle category. Notwithstanding this more permissive behavior on the part of American men, gender convergence with respect to sexual behavior is stronger in Sweden on several of the dimensions examined: age of first engaging in partner-related sexual activities for those who were sexually experienced, relationship with first partner, number of partners both in the last year and in their lifetime, and affective reactions to first coitus. Gender convergence, however, is weaker in Sweden than in the United States with respect to the incidence and frequency of various sexual activities and the degree of satisfaction with current sex life. Findings are discussed with respect to the questions they raise about the current theories that framed this research and the differential amount of sex education provided in the two countries.

Nontraditional gender roles and the sexual experiences of heterosexual college students

The purposes of this study of heterosexual college students were (1) to specify gender differences and similarities in sexual beliefs and experiences, (2) to determine the prevalence of women enacting traditional male roles in dating and sexual interactions, and (3) to examine the relationship between womens enactment of traditional male roles and their sexual experiences. Findings for this predominantly Caucasian sample indicated that there were no significant gender differences in age of first intercourse, frequency of intercourse, oral sex participation, prevalence of coitus and anal sex, rating of how often sex partners satisfied their sex needs and desires, and reactions to recent intercourse. Although less than mens frequencies, sizable proportions of women acknowledged they had multiple sex partners and sex without emotional involvement. Support for an increased proportion of females engaging in the traditional male roles of initiating sexual involvement and dates and paying date expenses was also found. Findings also suggested that there are no simple patterns between womens sexual experience and nontraditional roles but that this association depends on the specific role as well as the status and quality of a womans current sexual relationship. Findings were discussed in terms of their potential to contribute to womens sexual decisions.

Sexual health policies in other industrialized countries: Are there lessons for the United States?

Health professionals have been concerned about the high rates of unwanted and unplanned pregnancy, teenage pregnancy, abortion, and sexually transmitted diseases in the U.S. A major concern has been why these rates in the U.S. are so much higher than in most other western industrialized countries. In this article I summarize major national and comparative studies that have attempted to understand how the U.S. can do better in providing for the sexual health of its citizens. I also discuss approaches to sexual health in countries that do substantially better on the aforementioned indicators of sexual health. This review indicates that the recommendations of health and social science experts in the U.S. are consistent with approaches in countries where programs have done a better job in meeting the sexual health needs of their populations.

SEXUAL RIGHTS: MEANINGS, CONTROVERSIES, AND SEXUAL HEALTH PROMOTION

For nearly two decades the term sexual rights has been increasingly used in multiple disciplines, including family planning, public health, and sexology, as well as in advocacy campaigns for groups working to expand sexual health services and to promote nondiscrimination policies for those with nonnormative sexual or gender identities. International organizations such as the World Health Organization, the World Association of Sexual Health, and the International Planned Parenthood Federation have all presented lists of sexual rights and given arguments for why sexual rights are human rights. Nevertheless, I argue that a comprehensive understanding of human/sexual rights is lacking not only by many in sexuality fields but also by the vast majority of the general public. I agree with those who stress that applications of sexual rights are often not straightforward; rather they involve complexities and critical analyses of multiple areas. In this article, I discuss principles of human rights and rights-based approaches to sexual health policies, describe conceptualizations of sexual rights, and present views about controversies and advantages of using sexual rights frameworks. My aim is to promote an understanding of discourses about and applications of sexual rights. Such understanding can be a starting point for those who want to integrate rights principles into their work.

Sociocultural correlates of permissive sexual attitudes: A test of Reiss's hypotheses about Sweden and the United States

In a 1980 publication, Ira Reiss proposed a set of theoretical statements concerning gender roles and sexual customs in Sweden and the United States. He stated that, in comparison to the United States, sexual attitudes are more permissive in Sweden and that factors accounting for these differences include country variations in religiosity and attitudes toward general gender egalitarianism, the naturalism of sex, and the role of government with respect to sexual matters. The present research tests the extent to which Reisss descriptions are currently supported. For this purpose, a questionnaire was designed and data was collected from heterosexual university students in these two countries. Support was found for many of Reisss descriptions, and explanations for the exceptions are presented.

AIDS risk reduction strategies among United States and Swedish heterosexual university students.

Attitudes toward sex and condoms in the U.S. are more negative and less monolithic than in Sweden. We investigated the possible effect of this on AIDS prevention strategies by comparing women and men who were heterosexual university students in the two countries (Sweden: n = 570; U.S.: n = 407). Using self-administered questionnaires, subjects were asked about their sexual activities, safer sex practices, numbers of partners, and condom use. American students took a more multifaceted approach to safer sex — combining changes in sexual activities, reductions in casual sex, and increased condom use with both steady and nonsteady partners. Swedish students took a more singular approach — consistently using condoms with nonsteady partners. It is suggested that the difference in Swedish practices results from fundamental differences in sexual attitudes between the countries.

Conceptualization and Assessment of Homonegativity

ABSTRACT The goals of this research include highlighting problematic issues of conceptualization and measurement with respect to research examining homonegativity. Using a sample of nearly 650 university students, we test hypotheses of M. A. Morrison and Morrison (2002) who claim that old-fashioned and modern homonegativity are statistically distinct domains and that university students endorse a higher degree of modern than old-fashioned homonegativity. In addition, we examine relationships between reported negative and positive behaviors involving lesbians and gay men and degrees of modern and old-fashioned homonegativity. Factor analyses did not support the distinctiveness of the two homonegativity domains, and only 16% of the sample endorsed a higher degree of modern compared with old-fashioned homonegativity. Findings are discussed with respect to their implications for future research.