Sexual values of 783 undergraduates.(Report)

The sexual values of absolutism (abstinence until marriage), relativism (sexual decisions made in reference to the nature of the relationship), and hedonism ("if it feels good, do it") were assessed in a convenience sample of 783 undergraduate students at a large southeastern university. Results revealed that relativism (62.1%) was the predominate sexual value followed by hedonism (24.6%) and absolutism (13.4%). Significant differences included: men were more hedonistic than women; Blacks were more absolutist than whites, older students (those 19 years of age and above) were more hedonistic than those who were younger, persons who had "hooked up" were more hedonistic than those who had not hooked up, persons who had experienced a "friends with benefits" relationship were more hedonistic than persons who had not, persons not involved in a relationship were more hedonistic than those who were involved, persons who had not cohabited were more absolutist than those who had cohabited. Theoretical explanations for gender differences and implications/limitations of the data are suggested.

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Limited research has been conducted on sexual values--the moral guidelines individuals use to make decisions regarding their sexual behavior. Recent exceptions include research demonstrating the nature of parental transmission of sexual values (implicit, nonverbal, negative) (Kim and Ward, 2007) and the perceived inadequacy of parental discussions of sexuality (Rouse-Arnett and Mario Long Dilworth, 2006). The current research examined the sexual values of a convenience sample of university undergraduates (primarily first year students and sophomores). What moral principles guide undergraduates today and how do their values differ by gender, race, age, relationship status, and cohabitation experience were among the questions of this study.

Sample and Methodology

The data for this study were taken from a larger nonrandom sample of 783 undergraduates at a large southeastern university who answered a 100 item questionnaire (approved by the Institutional Review Board of the university) on "Sexual Attitudes and Behaviors of College Students." Respondents completed the questionnaire anonymously (the researcher was not in the room when the questionnaire was completed and no identifying information or codes allowed the researcher to know the identity of the respondents). Of the respondents 74.6% were females; 25.4% were males. Racial background included 82% whites, 18% Blacks (respondent self-identified as African-American Black, African Black, and Caribbean Black or biracial) and 1.8% Hispanic. The median age of the sample was 19 with 71.7% younger and 28.3% older.

Items specific to sexual values and their correlates served as the focus of this paper. Three sexual values were identified and defined with students asked to select the sexual value they currently adhered to: Absolutism was defined as "intercourse before marriage is wrong"; relativism-"if you are in a loving relationship, intercourse is ok even if not married"; and hedonism-"if it feels good, do it--being in love or being married don't matter." Responses to these three sexual values were cross-classified to determine the statistical significance of hypothesized differences (Chi Square).

Findings and Discussion