Below you will find the draft to my Sex and the City research paper. I’m very pleased with my essay and am glad I got to write about a topic that is so interesting to me. Writing a scientific paper with a method, design, and discussion section allowed me to try out a new writing style. I’ve read many of these type papers so it was cool to write one of my own.
LITERATURE REVIEW
Previous research has examined the effects of media use on sexual attitudes and behaviors. Research shows that media influences are significantly associated with adolescents’ sexual intentions and behaviors (L’Engle, Brown, & Kenneavy, 2006). In their study, L’Engle et al. (2006) found “that adolescents who are exposed to more sexual content in their media diets, and who perceive greater support from the media for teen sexual behavior, report more sexual activity and greater intentions to engage in sexual intercourse in the near future” (L’Engle et al., 2006). This is problematic because researchers have found “the majority of sexual content in the media depicts risk-free, recreational sexual behavior between nonmarried people” (L’Engle et al., 2006). It will be interesting to see how these portrayals affect viewers in relation to my study of Sex and the City.
A large amount of media research involves the cultivation theory which assumes television as a whole impacts the viewer regardless of the specific content; however, this is not always the case. Ward et al. (2006) argue “that specific critical portrayals may exert a stronger force on impression formation and image building than might the sheer frequency of television viewed” (p. 62). I hope to further explore this notion in my study which is why I will focus on the impact of choosing to watch Sex and the City on students’ sexual attitudes and behaviors. Studies have examined the sexual content of Sex and the City compared to television in general and found that “Sex and the City featured more sexual content scenes per hour than television in general” (Jensen & Jensen, 2007, p. 279). Because of this, I am interested in analyzing representations of sexual attitudes and behaviors in Sex and the City and how these representations impact viewers.
Ward & Friedman (2006) found that “more frequent viewing of Sexy Prime-Time programming [like Sex and the City] was associated with stronger support of Recreational Sex” (p. 146). In a content analysis of Sex and the City, Cramer (2007) discovered that there are “frequent references to sex as a ‘‘fun’’ activity; i.e., implying no commitment or deeper intimacy with another” (p.415). She also found discussion of the frequency of sex for the characters on Sex and the City. Similarly, Markle (2008) found that “almost all of the relationships started out as recreational sexual encounters, with sex generally occurring on the first date or meeting” (p.51). As mentioned above, this emphasis on sex as recreation could have potentially negative effects on viewers who might look to the show for validation and approval in regards to their own sexual attitudes and behaviors.
Aside from simply viewing the sexual depictions on Sex and the City, viewers who identify with specific characters may feel greater media effects. Ward and Friedman (2006) found that “more frequent viewing and stronger identification with popular TV characters were associated with greater levels of sexual experience” (p.133). I expect to find similar results in my own study; however, I plan to study the effects of just Sex and the City on a college-age female population whereas this study looked at the effects of various television shows on a high-school- age mixed gender population. Ward et al. (2006) explored which characters on television people identify with and found a majority of responses including Carrie on Sex and the City. They found “that identifying with popular characters and perceiving media figures as role models is indeed associated with students’ sexual attitudes and behavior” (Ward et al., 2006, p.63). Likewise, Ward and Rivadenyra (1999) found that “adolescent viewers who experienced greater connection with the sexual situations typically portrayed on network television were also more likely to endorse recreational attitudes toward sex, to expect higher levels of sexual activity among their peers, and to be more sexually experienced.” I expect those who identify with one or more of the four main female characters in Sex and the City (Carrie, Samantha, Charlotte, Miranda) to feel more in control of their sex lives and to engage in more sex because this is how the characters are represented on the show.
It may be that those who identify with the female characters on Sex and the City think it is okay to engage in frequent casual premarital sex after seeing the characters own sexual attitudes and behaviors. Conversely, those who identify with the characters on Sex and the City may do so because the portrayals of sex on the show demonstrated through conversations and behaviors fit with their existing views on sex (Rubin, 2002). As is indicated by the content analyses and my own viewing of the show, the sexual attitudes displayed in Sex and the City include, but are not limited to, the following: casual sex is fun, premarital sex is okay, confidence in the bedroom is attractive, a high sex drive is expected, and a woman should sleep with a man on her terms. The sexual behaviors depicted on the show include, but are not limited to, the following: engaging in casual premarital sex, engaging in sexual acts with men who the women do not know very well, initiating sex, and talking to each other about sex.
Although some researchers discuss the negative effects of mass media on sexual attitudes and behaviors, others think that mass media may have a positive influence on young women’s sexual health and development. Ward, Day, & Epstein (2006) found that “despite evidence that a majority of portrayals are one-dimensional sexual stereotypes, some characters are not and instead provide realistic characterizations with which viewers can connect” (p. 58). I propose that the female characters on Sex and the City fall into this category because the show does not portray the characters in terms of sexual stereotypes such as male dominance, female submission, and female sexual objectification. As Sanchez, Kiefer, and Ybarra (2006) note, “the media depict gender-based sexual roles that promulgate female sexual submissiveness” (p. 513). Instead, Sex and the City represents the female characters as initiating, engaging in, and talking about sex more often than the male characters do as is indicated by the absence of sexually dominant male characters. In contrast to typical media representations, the male characters on Sex and the City seem to be the ones that are objectified. This could pose its own threats, but they are not of interest to my study.
Fortunately, research has been conducted to investigate the portrayals of men in Sex and the City. Cramer’s (2007) study indicates that “in Sex and the City, male characters are stereotyped, fairly undeveloped, and often labeled. The one male character that could be considered the leading male character on the show (Carrie’s long-term love interest) is never referred to by name but by the nickname she gives him: ‘‘Mr. Big.” Other men are referred to as, ‘‘Mr. Cocky,’’ ‘‘The ‘we’ guy,’’ ‘‘Catholic Guy,’’ ‘‘The Marrying Guy,’’ ‘‘Manhattan Guy,’’ and ‘‘Mr. Pussy’’” (p. 420). Here, we see how men are objectified by being represented in terms of stereotypical descriptors. “In addition, men are often discussed in terms of their anatomy and how they perform sexually. In this sense, they are objects” (Cramer, 2007, p. 420-421). This portrayal of men as sex objects is atypical for the media. Usually it is the women who are sexually objectified. However, the four main female characters in Sex and the City do not fit the stereotypical mold of women as sex objects. Markle (2008) found that “the leading women attempt to transgress gendered sexual roles in their quest to experience ‘‘sex like a man’’, which they characterize as without feeling, for pleasure only, and with no commitment” (p.46). Again, this could be problematic for viewers who imitate the attitudes and behaviors of the characters. Here is one such example of a Sex and the City character behaving in opposition to stereotypical sexual standards. “In classic gender role reversal, Samantha clearly treats her partners as sex objects and openly disdains the prospect of emotional commitment” (Markle, 2008, p. 52). Lorie’s (2011) study mirrors these findings: “After viewing the entire series we have witnessed how Samantha and her sexually aggressive lifestyle more or less victimizes men by treating them mostly as sexual objects.” These content analyses have prompted me to inquire about Sex and the City’s reversal of sexual stereotypes such as the depiction of men as sex objects and how these portrayals impact female college-age students’ sexual attitudes and behaviors.
Previous research has focused on the effects of sexualized television on adolescents’ attitudes and behaviors concerning sex. Researchers have found that children with high sexual media diets are more likely to think favorably about and to engage in casual premarital sex. Many researchers have focused on the specific type of sexual depictions on television as a whole. Other researchers have studied certain programs and the portrayals of sex represented through characters’ behaviors. There is an abundance of literature on the sexual content of Sex and the City including the notion that men are portrayed as sex objects instead of women; however, research lacks the effects of these sexual representations on a college-age female population. My study will fill this gap by analyzing the sexual attitudes and behaviors of those who choose to watch Sex and the City in comparison to those who do not choose to watch Sex and the City.
My areas of interest are as follows: students’ sexual attitudes and behaviors and students’ identification with one or more of the four main female characters in Sex and the City. In light of existing research concerning media effects on sexual attitudes and behaviors, specifically those studies involving the sexual content of Sex and the City, the following research questions are of interest to me: “Are Sex and the City viewers more likely to think of sex as a form of recreation?” “Does this effect strengthen for those who form parasocial interactions with one or more of the four main female characters in Sex and the City?” I propose that undergraduate female college students aged 18-22 who choose to watch Sex and the City will be more likely to view sex as recreation, while undergraduate female college students aged 18-22 who do not choose to watch Sex and the City will be less likely to do so. This effect will be stronger for those who form parasocial interactions with one or more of the four main female characters in Sex and the City (Carrie, Samantha, Charlotte, Miranda).
METHOD
Participants
Participants will be 150 undergraduate Communication Studies female students at the University of Michigan aged 18-22 (M=21.3 years). Participants will be recruited through an email announcement in the weekly Communication Studies newsletter. Participants will be put into a drawing to receive a $25 Amazon gift card for their participation.
Measures/Materials
Television Viewing Measure
To measure if participants watch Sex and the City, they will be asked about their viewing of various comedies and dramas previously coded as popular programs among the selected population (e.g., Sex and the City, Glee, Gossip Girl, Grey’s Anatomy). We will include other programs besides Sex and the City because we don’t want participants to guess the purpose of the study. There will be a total of 8 different programs. Using a 40-item closed-ended questionnaire about participants’ television viewing habits (e.g., “Sex and the City is one of my favorite shows”, “I regularly watch Grey’s Anatomy”), participants will indicate how accurate they think each statement is on a 5-point Likert scale from 1 (strongly disagree) to 5 (strongly agree). The questionnaire will contain 5 questions about each of the 8 programs in a random order. Viewing of each program will be calculated on the basis of 4s and 5s given to the questions pertaining to each program. Participants who select a 4 or 5 on all 5 of the Sex and the City questions will be considered Sex and the City viewers.
‘Sex as Recreation’ Measure
To measure if participants view sex as recreation, they will be asked about their sexual attitudes and behaviors. Using a 40-item closed-ended questionnaire about participants’ sexual attitudes (e.g., “Pre-marital sex is fun”) and behaviors (e.g., “I have a large number of sexual partners”), participants will indicate how accurate they think each statement is on the 5-point Likert scale described above. The questionnaire will contain reversed items (e.g., “I don’t like having sex”, “People shouldn’t have sex with a guy they just met”) in order to account for biases. Researchers will code the answers and divide the participants’ scores into two groups: high in ‘sex as recreation’ and low in ‘sex as recreation’. Answers that indicate the participant views sex as recreation will receive higher scores than answers that do not indicate that the participant views sex as recreation. A high score on the ‘sex as recreation’ measure will suggest higher likelihood of viewing sex as recreation.
Parasocial Interaction Measure
To measure if participants form parasocial interactions with one or more of the four main female characters on Sex and the City, they will be asked about their relationships with various media characters. We will measure this by using a slideshow containing 20 images of media characters followed by a free response questionnaire about participants’ relationships with the characters. Images of the four main female characters in Sex and the City will be mixed with images of other media characters that have previously been coded as appearing in television shows popular among this population so participants don’t guess what the study is about (e.g., Blair from Gossip Girl). The free response portion of the parasocial interaction measure will ask participants to recall what media characters they saw in the slideshow and record how they would feel if they were able to meet the characters in real life. Researchers will only be interested in phrases that indicate a parasocial interaction with one or more of the four main female characters in Sex and the City. The images of other media characters will be used as filler items. Researchers will code the answers and divide the participants’ answers into two groups: high in parasocial interaction and low in parasocial interaction. Phrases that indicate the participant forms a parasocial interaction with one or more of the four main female characters in Sex and the City (e.g., “I feel like Carrie is one of us. I can picture her going shopping with us!”) will receive higher scores than phrases that do not indicate the participant forms a parasocial interaction with one or more of the four main female characters in Sex and the City (e.g., “I don’t like Miranda; she’s ugly). A high score on the parasocial interaction measure will suggest that the participant forms parasocial interactions with one or more of the four main female characters in Sex and the City.
Design/Procedure
Participants will complete the questionnaire portion of this study (both the television viewing measure and the ‘sex as recreation’ measure) through an online survey. Participants will be asked to click on the survey link in their email and complete the entire survey in one sitting. The directions that will appear on the cover page are as follows: “We are interested in learning about the attitudes and behaviors of college students. Please complete all portions of the following questionnaire. At the end, there will be a brief demographics section. Remember to hit submit and include your UM-ID in order to be entered into a drawing for a $25 Amazon gift card.” We are including the demographics section to control for age, race, SES, peer behavior, and parent attitudes in order to cover plausible alternative explanations. Two weeks after completing the questionnaire portion of the study, participants whose scores indicate they choose to watch Sex and the City will be called into a lab for a follow-up study to assess if they form parasocial interactions with one or more of the four main female characters in Sex and the City. Researchers will tell participants the new study is about media characters but will not associate it with the original study in any way in order to obtain the most accurate results. Participants will be escorted into a private room and seated at a computer where they will be asked to view a series of images on a slideshow and open the door when the slideshow is complete. Participants will then be asked to answer the free-response portion of the study. When they have completed this step, participants will be thanked for their participation and dismissed from the lab.
PLANNED COMPARISONS
Given my hypothesis that undergraduate female college students aged 18-22 who choose to watch Sex and the City will be more likely to view sex as recreation than undergraduate female college students aged 18-22 who do not choose to watch Sex and the City, I believe that scores on the ‘sex as recreation’ scale will be higher for participants who choose to watch Sex and the City than for participants who do not choose to watch Sex and the City. Given my hypothesis that this effect will be stronger for those who form parasocial interactions with one or more of the four main female characters in Sex and the City, I believe that scores on the ‘sex as recreation’ scale will be higher for participants who score high on the parasocial interaction scale.
DISCUSSION
After we examine the correlations between the TV viewing measure and the ‘sex as recreation’ measure, we expect to find a positive relationship between choosing to watch Sex and the City and viewing sex as recreation. We expect this effect to be stronger among those who form parasocial interactions with one or more of the four main characters in Sex and the City. A large majority of the existing research about Sex and the City involves content analyses. Although these studies shed light on the highly sexual content of the show, they fail to look at the correlation and effects of viewing Sex and the City. The goal of my study is to help fill this gap by finding correlational evidence that Sex and the City influences student’s sexual attitudes and behaviors. This study will contribute to and expand upon existing research about television’s influence on viewers’ sexual attitudes and behaviors by focusing on one particular show and using a college-age female population.
There are a few possible limitations of my study that are worth noting. One is that using a population of Communication Studies undergraduates could skew the results because the students are taught about the effects of media in their curriculum and are thus more media literate. Another is that the participants may be inclined to give the “best” or “right” answer, meaning that they could answer the ‘sex as recreation’ portion of the survey in a modest way. Alternatively, they may feel inclined to prove themselves to their peers by overestimating their number of sex partners or their frequency of sex which could also skew the ‘sex as recreation’ portion of the study. Since my study is correlation, it cannot eliminate third variables such as prior sexual experiences and beliefs.
If the results support my hypothesis, one potential implication of my findings is an increase in sexually transmitted diseases and accidental pregnancies. Would believing that pre-marital sex is fun and agreeing with the statement about having a lot of sexual partners prevent students from considering the sometimes serious implications of their sexual behaviors? A possible positive implication of my findings is the adoption of an empowered attitude for college-age females. Since past literature has indicated that Sex and the City portrays women in dominant, powerful positions, it may be the case that watching Sex and the City causes students to be more in control of their sex lives, but once again we must note that this study is correlational and not causal.
It would be interesting to perform a longitudinal experimental study in the future to measure if the associations between watching Sex and the City and viewing sex as recreation are long-term and causal. It would also be interesting to see if studies involving other shows have the same results in order to prove the scope of this finding. If our expected results expand beyond the influences of Sex and the City, it is possible that correlations between watching television and viewing sex as recreation emerge even for shows that are not blatantly centered upon sex.
References
Cramer, J. M. (2007). Discourses of sexual morality in sex and the city and queer as folk. Journal of Popular Culture, 40(3), 409-432.
Jensen, R. E. & Jensen, J. D. (2007). Entertainment media and sexual health: A content analysis of sexual talk, behavior, and risks in a popular television series. Sex Roles, 56(5), 275-284.
L’Engle, K. L., Brown, J. D., & Kenneavy, K. (2006). The mass media are an important context for adolescents’ sexual behavior. Journal of Adolescent Health, 38(3), 186-192.
Lorie, A. F. (2011). Forbidden fruit or conventional apple pie? A look at sex and the city’s reversal of the female gender. Media, Culture & Society, 33 (1), 35-51.
Markle, G. (2008). Can women have sex like a man?”: Sexual scripts in sex and the city. Sexuality & Culture, 12(1), 45-57.
Rubin, A. M. (2002). The uses and gratifications perspective of media effects. In J. Bryant & D. Zillmann (Ed.), Media effects: Advances in theory and research (pp. 525-548, 2nd ed.). Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum.
Sanchez, D. T., Kiefer, A. K., & Ybarra, O. (2006). Sexual submissiveness in women: Costs for sexual autonomy and arousal. Personality & Social Psychology Bulletin, 32(4), 512-524.
Ward, L. M., Day, K. M., & Epstein, M. (2006). Uncommonly good: Exploring how mass media may be a positive influence on young women’s sexual health and development. New Directions for Child and Adolescent Development, 2006(112), 57-70.
Ward, L. M. & Friedman, K. (2006). Using TV as a guide: Associations between television viewing and adolescents’ sexual attitudes and behavior. Journal of Research on Adolescence, 16 (1), 133–156.
Ward, L. M. & Rivadenyra, R. (1999). Contributions of entertainment television to adolescents’ sexual attitudes and expectations: The role of viewing amount versus viewer involvement. The Journal of Sex Research, 36(3), 237-249.