SEX, POWER, AND DEPENDENCY - THE POLITICS OF ADOLESCENT SEXUALITY

This study examines the social psychological determinants of adolescen t sexual activity. Drawing on power-dependency theory within a social exchange framework a conceptual model of adolescent sexuality is devel oped and tested using survey data on 288 teenagers. It is hypothesized that attributes of power (confidence with members of the opposite sex , popularity, opposite-sex friends, and egalitarian gender role attitu des) would indirectly decrease sexual activity (participation in unwan ted sex and the extent of intimate sexual behaviors) through their neg ative effect on dependence (discomfort with physical appearance, the n eed for self-disclosure and closeness, the need for physical gratifica tion in sex and the need for emotional gratification in sex). The find ings indicate that the model is a good predictor of the sexual activit y of adolescent males for whom dependency is an important determinant of sexual behavior. When the model is estimated separately for the Bla ck and white teenagers, distinct patterns are observed for the Black f emales. Black females' participation in unwanted sex is far below the average for the other subgroups, and the most influential factor in de creasing coercion for Black females is nontraditional gender role atti tudes.