The gamesmanship of sex: A model based on African American adolescent accounts

This article examines adolescent understanding of the social context of sex ual behavior. Using grounded theory to interpret interviews with 39 African American male and female adolescents, the article builds a model of sex-re lated behavior as a set of interrelated games. A courtship game involves co mmunication of sexual or romantic interest and, over time, formation of a r omantic relationship. A duplicity game draws on conventions of a courtship game to trick a partner into having sex. A disclosure game spreads stories about one's own and others' sex-related activities to peers in a gossip net work. Finally, a prestige game builds social reputation in the eyes of peer s, typically based on gender-specific standards. The article concludes by e xamining the meanings that sex-related behavior may have for adolescents an d the potential use of social knowledge for facilitating adolescent health.