What are your beliefs in engaging in sexual intimacy?
Answers
Answer:
The role of beliefs in sexual behavior of adolescents: Development and validation of an Adolescent Sexual Expectancies Scale
Answer:
ok
Explanation:
The role of beliefs in sexual behavior of adolescents: Development and validation of an Adolescent Sexual Expectancies Scale (ASEXS)
Beth Bourdeau, Joel W. Grube, [...], and Deborah A. Fisher
Additional article information
Abstract
This paper reports on the development and psychometric properties of the Adolescent Sexual Expectancies Scale (ASEXS). Data were obtained from three annual longitudinal surveys of youth aged 10 – 17 at the first administration (N = 932 at Wave 3). Confirmatory factor analyses indicated that four correlated factors corresponding to Social Risk, Social Benefit, Health Risk, and Pleasure adequately represented the expectancy items. High alpha coefficients and stability across survey waves indicated good internal and test-retest reliability for these factors. Latent variable autoregressive analyses indicated that Social Risk expectancies predicted changes in sexual behavior over the course of the study. Multi-group analyses established that the measurement and predictive models were equivalent for males and females and across age groups. The ASEXS provides researchers with a useful measure for examining adolescents’ expectancy beliefs about the consequences of sexual behavior.
Expectancies are beliefs about the likelihood that engaging in a behavior will lead to specific personal consequences (Olson, Roese, & Zanna, 1996). That is, they are subjective representations of anticipated rewards and punishments associated with that behavior. Expectancies are central concepts in many contemporary social-psychological theories (e.g., Ajzen, 2001; Bandura, 1986). A basic assumption of these theories is that individuals act in ways they believe will maximize positive outcomes and minimize negative outcomes. Expectancies are thus guides to future behavior and may affect how an individual attends to and interprets information, responds to and interacts with others, and selects and interprets social and environmental contexts (e.g., Olson, et al., 1996). Importantly, expectancies are malleable beliefs. They are acquired and modified through experience, communication from others, or observation. Expectancy beliefs may also derive from other logically related beliefs a person holds (e.g., Olson, Roese, & Zanna, 1996). For example, having unfavorable normative beliefs about having sex (e.g., my parents would disapprove) may affect expectancy beliefs regarding the likelihood of social consequences (e.g., getting into trouble). Expectancies not only help explain and predict behaviors, but may be an important focus for interventions designed to prevent or reduce problem behaviors or encourage healthy behaviors (Kamb, et al., 1998; Rhodes, et al., 2007).