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Globally, over a third of women have experienced physical or sexual violence in their lifetime. In Russia, human trafficking, sexual exploitation, and physical abuse of women are amongst the world’s highest. Applying cognitive dissonance theory and sexual script theory, this study explores whether women (n = 654) trading sex in Russia appraise their experiences of entering the commercial sex trade as voluntary or forced. Contributing client factors were also analyzed, including beatings (66%), rape (66%), and humiliation (86%) by clients. Multiple logistic regression assessed whether women who reported voluntarily entering the commercial sex trade were more likely to experience physical abuse but less likely to experience rape (AOR:1.37); were more likely to perceive men using them as decent/caring (AOR = 2.54); were more likely to sell sadistic/masochistic services (AOR: 2.31); and less likely to stop selling sex (AOR: 5.84). Implications of this study reveal the importance of intervention strategies that account for a woman’s unawareness of her own exploitation and mistreatment as well as the psychological barriers that prevent her from seeking help. The necessity of recognizing women selling sex as sufferers of coercion and abuse is also emphasized.

Globally, over a third of women have experienced physical or sexual violence in their lifetime. In Russia, human trafficking, sexual exploitation, and physical abuse of women are amongst the world's highest. Applying cognitive dissonance theory and sexual script theory, this study explores whether women (n = 654) trading sex in Russia appraise their experiences of entering the commercial sex trade as voluntary or forced. Contributing client factors were also analyzed, including beatings (66%), rape (66%), and humiliation (86%) by clients. Multiple logistic regression assessed whether women who reported voluntarily entering the commercial sex trade were more likely to experience physical abuse but less likely to experience rape (AOR:1.37); were more likely to perceive men using them as decent/caring (AOR = 2.54); were more likely to sell sadistic/masochistic services (AOR: 2.31); and less likely to stop selling sex (AOR: 5.84). Implications of this study reveal the importance of intervention strategies that account for a woman's unawareness of her own exploitation and mistreatment as well as the psychological barriers that prevent her from seeking help. The necessity of recognizing women selling sex as sufferers of coercion and abuse is also emphasized. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

While the lack of consent is the only determining factor in considering whether a situation is rape or not, there is sufficient evidence that participants conflate wantedness with consent and pleasurableness with wantedness. Understanding how people appraise sexual scenarios may form the basis to develop appropriate educational packages. We conducted two large-scale qualitative studies in two UK universities in which participants read vignettes describing sexual encounters that were consensual or not, wanted or unwanted and pleasurable or not pleasurable. Participants provided free-text responses as to whether they perceived the scenarios to be rape or not and why they made these judgments. The second study replicated the results of the first and included a condition where participants imagined themselves as either the subject or initiator of the sexual encounter. The results indicate that a significant portion of our participants held attitudes reflecting rape myths and tended to blame the victim. Participants used distancing language when imagining themselves in the initiator condition. Participants indicated that they felt there were degrees of how much a scenario reflected rape rather than it simply being a dichotomy (rape or not). Such results indicate a lack of understanding of consent and rape and highlight avenues of potential educational materials for schools, universities or jurors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

For women, the high‐risk sex script of condomless sex to maintain relationships with men is concerning, particularly in regard to heterosexual HIV acquisition. This secondary analysis of data from a clinical trial evaluated the effect of a 12‐episode, web‐based video series intervention, entitled Love, Sex, and Choices, versus a text message control on lowering the high‐risk sex script. The sample comprised 238 predominately urban Black women, ages 18–29, having HIV sex risk behavior. Data were collected at baseline and 6 months post‐intervention. The Sex Script Video Response score was used to measure a high‐risk sex script. HIV sex risk behavior was measured by Vaginal Equivalent Episodes with high‐risk partners. At baseline, lower education, younger age at first sexual intercourse, and alcohol/non‐injection drug use before sex were positively associated with a high‐risk sex script. At baseline, as the high‐risk sex script increased by one log unit, sex risk behavior increased by 0.47 log units (p < 0.001), equivalent to a 60% increase in the geometric mean of sex risk behavior. ANCOVA analysis indicated that from baseline to 6‐months post intervention, lowering the high‐risk sex script by one unit was associated with an additional reduction of 0.26 units in sex risk behavior. Compared to the text messages, the LSC video series was associated with a 27% greater reduction in the geometric mean of the sex script (p = 0.03). Further investigation into the effect of lowering sex scripts to reduce sex risk behavior is recommended. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study used a sample of 257 female college students to investigate the heterogeneity of threat assessment, risk response, and delays in behavioral response, after the establishment of discomfort. Findings from three ordinary least squares (OLS) regression models indicated that (a) increased rape myth acceptance was correlated with threat assessment delays, (b) increased rape myth acceptance and prior verbally coercive sex were correlated with risk response delays, and (c) frequent pornography consumption and prior victimization were correlated with delayed behavioral response so that a woman remained in a risky sexual situation longer after establishing discomfort as compared to counterparts. Implications for research and policy are addressed. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

In 2009, romance novels accounted for $1.36 billion worth of book sales, giving this genre the largest market share by a wide margin. However, despite their popularity, very little research has been done on the sexual behaviours depicted in these books or on the context in which these behaviours occur. The goals of this study were to gain an understanding of how sex and sexuality are portrayed in contemporary romance novels and to determine whether these portrayals have changed over the last 20 years. It was hypothesized that most depictions of sexuality in romance novels would adhere to Western sexual scripts (Gagnon ; Gagnon and Simon ; Simon and Gagnon , ) and that this would not change over time. The sample consisted of books that had won the Romance Writers of America award for best contemporary single-title romance from 1989 to 2009. A quantitative content analysis revealed that hypotheses were supported with respect to characterization of the male and female protagonists, characterization and context of the romantic relationships, and order and nature of sexual behaviours. The implications of these results for further research on depictions of sex and sexuality in the media are considered. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

New cases of HIV/AIDS among women of color in the United States highlight the continuing need for the public and private sectors to develop alternate preventive strategies. The author discusses the conceptual basis for using television sex scripts to incorporate women of color relational needs (trust, romance, sexual pressure) to promote HIV risk-reduction messages through a process of association with the television storyline. Sex scripts are a source of implicit knowledge about how to behave in situations that involve sexual intimacy. The article suggests that sexual scripts prevention messages build on the agency of women through the use of power theory-that is supporting woman's self-power by participating in sexual behavioral change. Implications for sexual equality in media programming are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Previous research on sexual content in magazines has established that sexual advice is a commonly included feature but no study to date has identified the specific content of the messages that are being promoted regarding how to achieve good, better or “great sex”. The purpose of this investigation was to determine, using both qualitative and quantitative methods, the components of “great sex” as depicted (and promised) in a selection of men’s and women’s magazines. Five major components of “great sex” emerged from content analysis including technical/mechanical/physical factors, variety, relationship factors, psychological factors and pre-sex preparation. Frequency counts showed an overwhelming focus on technical, mechanical and physical factors and variety as the prescribed means to achieve “great sex” according to popular magazines. Advice on how to achieve better or “great sex” tended to be framed in ways that promoted sexual and gender-role stereotypes, enforced narrow sexual scripts and presented readers with contradictory and conflicting messages. Similarities and differences between men’s and women’s magazines are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study explored reasons women engaged in unprotected sex with male partners they distrusted and perceived to engage in HIV risk behaviors. Seven focus groups were held in public housing and neighborhood centers in the urban Northeast with 43 African American and Latina women. Content analysis was conducted by open and axial coding. Barrett’s theory of power as knowing participation in change and sex script theory guided interpretation. Results indicated that Patterns of Unprotected Sex is a usual practice to maintain hope, sensuality, intimacy, strategic gain, and stability with a male partner. In low power sex scripts the salient risks of HIV were buried under an awareness of oneself as having to satisfy a man and accept cheating. High power sex scripts involved women’s awareness of themselves as worthy of self care with diverse choices. High power scripts can be integrated into normative sex scripts as exemplars of more powerful ways of being and acting to reduce HIV risk. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]