Introduction
The exciting topic I have chosen to research on is the relationship between human sexuality and the media. With the increasing use of technology, it is essential that research is done to determine the impacts technology has on human sexuality, especially teenagers. The increasing concerns on teenager’s exposure to media contents and effects the contents have on their sexual beliefs, behavior, and attitude have attracted my attention. Thus, a great deal of research attention has been devoted to comprehending what puts teenagers to early pregnancy and contracting of sexually transmitted infections (STIs) given their enormous social, economic, and public health consequences (Gruber & Grube, 2000). Therefore, I find the topic highly essential for general understanding of the impacts media and media contents have on their children and call caution to teenagers to be cautious of the contents they consume.
Although the sexual content conveyed through media can influence any age group of teenagers, the search finds that the most vulnerable group comprise of adolescents. Adolescents’ group of teenagers is vulnerable because they are undergoing a developmental period in sexual behaviors, attitudes, and gender roles (Ward & Delamater, 2015). The research indicates that adolescents’ access to and use of media as sources of information are substantial. More than eighty percent of the adolescents’ report that their peers have found out about sex, violence, and drugs from movies, television shows, and other media entertainment programs (Gruber & Grube, 2000).
Problem Statement
Access to media content by adolescent children in the era of technological and Internet advancement has developed a gigantic problem in society. This is attributed to a lack of control measures to deter or prevent children from consuming certain content. As well, lack of understanding or even knowing the kind or type of content consumed, when, how, and from what sources (Franzini, 2003). The potential of accessing media contents from different devices makes it difficult for parents and guardians to sustain their supervisory role in helping children navigating the media contents consumption. Therefore, the magnitude of the problem and its impacts on human sexuality provides the impetus for conducting extensive research on the topic. This is integral to devising of strategies and approaches to help the young generation maintain its purity, morals, and innocence. As a result, culminating in building a better and stable society whose future is secured. Thus, the problem statement of the findings emphasizes the value of conducting extensive research on the impacts of human sexuality behaviors especially on adolescent children that are undergoing through sexual development period (Goddard & Carey, 2015).
Significance of the Study
This research will be beneficial to the parents or guardians of these teenagers who are vulnerable to sexual content aired in media outlets. The research is critical to give solutions to ensure teenagers are safe from media contents to help them form negative impacts of the contents. Parental control is an effective way to keep these teenagers from the media. Also, having an open discussion regarding these sexual content with teenagers will help them curb the impacts when they meet the contents in the media (Ward & DeLamater, 2015). This is fundamental for the parents to build mechanisms and capacity to filter the kind and type of content in which their children consume. The potential to help children develop a sense of self-control is paramount to understanding the type of content they should access with or without their parents’ supervision.
The research is designed to outline measures that can be adopted in guiding parents on dealing, responding, and handling their adolescent children’s demands and desires. At the crucial period of sexual behavior development, the understanding of the parent to the children is crucial. This impact maintaining strong bonds and relationships where children can find solace and comfort in their parents. Therefore, it will profoundly benefit the parents in providing solutions on how to manage their children’s media content consumption without eroding their relationship.
Furthermore, the primary problem is experienced by adolescent children who have vast access to diverse media content. As technological and Internet advancement continues to expand, media contents have become more and more closer to the children (Media and teen sexual behavior, 2015). For instance, with a smartphone at hand, or a tablet, or laptop – an adolescent child can access extensive media content without the knowledge of the parent. Therefore, it is vital to provide ways to help children navigate the tempting world of consuming the wrong content from the vast access points they have at their disposal.
Research Method
The research will be informed by extensive analysis of secondary sources. The use of qualitative study is vital to understand the number of affected persons and those that are at risk in society. Also, this gives a clear understanding of the diversity of media contents, accessibility, devices, or platforms used to access the media and the effectiveness of the utilized measures. As a result, this impacts in identifying a gap which is crucial to guide the research. The research gap facilitates the focusing of the study on a particular problem and helps the research remain on course.
Furthermore, the use of the qualitative research method is vital to understanding the behavioral impacts of media on human sexuality on adolescent children. The paper focuses on understanding the relationship between human sexuality and media contents. The behavioral impacts influenced by media contexts consumed by children is vital to limit, filter, or eliminate unwanted and harmful from being accessed by under-age children. Therefore, it is critical to enabling both parents/guardians and children to navigate the type of media content that is healthy for consumption.
Conclusion
The conduct of the research to inform the study on the relationship between human sexuality and the media content, as well as its impacts on the behavior of adolescent children is paramount. This comes at a time when the challenge of controlling the kind and type of media contents consumed by adolescent children continues to become more difficult. This is because of the intensification and diversification of the media content access points in the era of technological and Internet advancements. The capacity to find solutions to the problem is vital to society to maintain its moral fabric and purity of future generations. Therefore, the research is timely and well-required to deal with the rapidly growing and expanding problem of consuming inappropriate media content.
