Journal Article Epublish 2 citations
PubMed: 40150144 DOI: 10.3390/bs15030250
Sexual and Agency Norms: Effect on Young Women's Self-Perception and Attitude Toward Sexual Consent.
Behav Sci (Basel) 15(3)
Authors: María Del Mar Sánchez-Fuentes, Antonio Rafael Hidalgo-Muñoz, Nieves Moyano, Carmen Gómez-Berrocal
Affiliations
- Mind, Brain and Behavior Research Center, University of Granada, 18011 Granada, Spain.
- Department of Basic Psychology, Psychobiology and Methodology of Behavioral Sciences, Faculty of Psychology, University of Salamanca, 37005 Salamanca, Spain.
- Department of Developmental and Educational Psychology, Faculty of Humanities and Education Sciences, University of Jaén, 23071 Jaén, Spain.
- Department of Social Psychology, Faculty of Psychology, University of Granada, 18011 Granada, Spain.
Abstract
BACKGROUND
The sexual double standard (SDS) governs behaviors related to sexual activity and abstinence, promoting negative evaluations of sexually assertive women. Conversely, the sexual agency norm encourages young women to express their sexuality freely. This study explores how this complex normative context, combining SDS and sexual agency norms, impacts young women's self-concept and attitudes toward sexual consent.
METHODS
A total of 154 Spanish university women ( = 19.69 years; = 2.23) participated in a 2 × 2 quasi-experimental design [Personal Reputation Threat: Sexual Activity vs. Sexual Abstinence × Agency Belief Affirmation: High vs. Low]. Participants completed a self-perception measure and the Spanish Adaptation of the Sexual Consent Scale-Revised.
RESULTS
Personal Reputation Threat influenced positive self-evaluation, with higher scores in the Sexual Activity (vs. Abstinence) condition. Agency Belief Affirmation also affected self-evaluation, with higher scores in the low-agency (vs. high-agency) condition. An interaction effect emerged on attitudes favoring sexual consent: participants showed greater support for sexual consent when devalued for sexual assertiveness rather than abstinence, but only under low-agency belief affirmation. These findings highlight identity conflicts and inconsistent sexual attitudes that young women may experience within the complex normative frameworks of contemporary Western societies.
MeSH
Perception