Music Lyrics and Influence on teen Sex

As a baby boomer, I was part of the generation that grew up with rock and roll. I recall the first time I heard my mother respond (unfavorably) to explicit lyrics that I listening to. They weren't nearly as explicit as the lyrics of today's music, and while I swore that I'd never become my mother, I now find myself fighting with my children to turn it off! Perhaps mom was not so far off-base after all!

In a recent national study of nearly 1,500 teenagers, researchers found a link between certain music and increased sexual behavior among teens. The researchers point out that the average teenager listens to 1.5 to 2.5 hours of music each day. While sexual themes are common in much of this music, the lyrics range from romantic and playful to degrading and hostile. What they found was that teens who listen to music with degrading sexual lyrics—including explicit references to sex and, especially, demeaning in their treatment of women—are more likely to experience advances in a range of their sexual activities, including initiation of intercourse. The association was evident among boys and girls, as well as among whites and nonwhite teens, and across a wide variety of other personal and social factors. The same did not hold true for music with other sexual lyrics.

The researchers encourage parents to monitor the type of music their children are exposed to, set limits on what they can purchase and listen to, and consider the lyrics of the music they're listening to when their children are around.

Source:  Donna Davis, Family Album Radio, Department of Family, Youth and Community Sciences, Cooperative Extension Service, Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences, University of Florida