Tara E. Sutton

Exposure to harsh parenting and pornography as explanations for males' sexual coercion and females' sexual victimization

Sexual violence against women is a major concern to researchers and policy makers, as well as to the general public. This study uses a sample of more than 2,000 college students to investigate the extent to which exposure to harsh parenting practices and sexually explicit materials contributes to perpetration and victimization. Findings indicate that frequent corporal punishment in the family of origin combined with consumption of pornographic materials increased the probability that males reported engaging in coercive sexual practices. For females, both frequent corporal punishment and exposure to paternal hostility combined with consumption of pornographic materials were associated with higher levels of reported sexual victimization. These results provide increased understanding of the impact of pornography use among a nonclinical sample, as well as the consequences of experiencing harsh corporal punishment in one’s family of origin, on the sexual victimization of females.

Developmental Trajectories of Substance Use among Sexual Minority Girls: Associations with Sexual Victimization and Sexual Health Risk

PURPOSE To examine mechanisms underlying the development of sexual health risk behaviors in sexual minority girls (SMGs) and its association with sexual victimization. METHODS Data were drawn from the Project on Human Development in Chicago Neighborhoods cohorts, aged 15 and 18 years (N = 391; 54 SMGs). RESULTS Sexual minority girls reported more sexual victimization and steeper positive trajectories of substance misuse over time than heterosexual girls. Growth in alcohol use during adolescence mediated the link between SMG status and past year number of partners, whereas growth in marijuana use mediated the link between SMG status and self-reported sexually transmitted diseases (STDs). Adding unwanted sexual experiences to the models resulted in a reduction of significance in the direct or indirect effects from SMG status on the sexual health outcomes. Unwanted sexual experiences emerged as a robust predictor directly and indirectly related to past-year number of partners via growth in alcohol use. Unwanted sexual experiences also directly predicted STD history. CONCLUSIONS The increased risk of SMGs for alcohol and marijuana during adolescence, higher rates of sexual partners, and STD diagnosis may also be linked to their significant risk for sexual victimization. Findings highlight the importance of preventive interventions targeting victimization of SMGs.

Review of Attachment Theory: Familial Predictors, Continuity and Change, and Intrapersonal and Relational Outcomes

ABSTRACT Initially, the major focus of attachment theory was the parent–child relationship, but Bowlby (1988) also described the attachment system as active over the entire life course. Accordingly, a proliferation of research on attachment theory in the past two decades has addressed an array of familial predictors as well as intrapersonal and relational outcomes of attachment. The purpose of this review is to present: 1) measurement of attachment, 2) family violence, parental depression, and parental divorce as predictors of attachment, 3) (in)stability of attachment over time, 4) impact of attachment on emotion regulation and psychopathology, and 5) influence of attachment on romantic relationship. Special attention is paid to the role of attachment as a mediator between family of origin experiences and outcomes among youth and adults.