The Lost Art of Courtship

When young children hear teens dating, they think sex and parties.

 

Unfortunately, the generation that is growing up today is exposed to too many movies and TV programs that show sexual activity. To spice up movies and gain attention, Hollywood puts many sex scenes in their movies.

 

This raises an important knowledge issue, to what extent do the scenes on TV that young children watch influence their attitude and behavior in their future?

 

A study of 1792 adolescents ages 12-17 showed that watching sex on TV influences teens to have sex. Youths who watched more sexual content where more likely to initiate intercourse and progress to more advanced sexual activities in the year following the beginning of the study. Youths in the 90th percentile of TV sex viewing had a predicted probability of intercourse initiation that was approximately double that of youths in the 10th percentile. Basically, kids with higher exposure to sex on TV were almost twice as likely than kids with lower exposure to initiate sexual intercourse. - Study Conducted by RAND and published in the September issue of Pediatrics.

 

*Kids and teens (8 to 18 years) spend nearly 4 hours a day in front of a TV screen and almost 2 additional hours on the computer (outside of schoolwork) and playing video games.

 

Where have all the ideals and morals gone to regarding dating? Are the numerous Hollywood movies and TV shows that have sexual intercourse influencing teenagers to have sex? The statistics most definitely show that young teenagers are more likely to engage in sexual intercourse if they watch TV shows and movies that have sex scenes.

 

*For high school students reporting in 2009 that they had ever had sexual intercourse, percentages were highest among Black males (72 percent) and females (58 percent), followed by Hispanic males (53 percent) and females (45 percent), and White females (45 percent) and males (40 percent). -Advocates for Youth

 

Parents should understand and monitor their children's activity, guiding them and providing a strong moral foundation in their youth. Sadly young teens are enchanted with the idea to be "cool" and "popular" once they enter high school, they change once they enter school, trying drugs and then sex.

 

Where is parent leadership? Parents have the responsibility to install morals and ideals in their children from a young age, they need to monitor their behavior and guide them through their path through high school and life.