Abstract
Despite recent declines in overall sexual activity, sexual risk-taking remains a substantial danger to US youth. Existing research points to athletic participation as a promising venue for reducing these risks. Linear regressions and multiple analyses of covariance were performed on a longitudinal sample of nearly 600 Western New York adolescents in order to examine gender- and race-specific relationships between “jock” identity and adolescent sexual risk-taking, including age of sexual onset, past-year and lifetime frequency of sexual intercourse, and number of sexual partners. After controlling for age, race, socioeconomic status, and family cohesion, male jocks reported more frequent dating than nonjocks but female jocks did not. For both genders, athletic activity was associated with lower levels of sexual risk-taking; however, jock identity was associated with higher levels of sexual risk-taking, particularly among African American adolescents. Future research should distinguish between subjective and objective dimensions of athletic involvement as factors in adolescent sexual risk.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Ashmore, R. D., Del Boca, F. K., and Beebe, M. (2002). ‘Alkie,’ ‘frat brother,’ and ‘jock’: Perceived types of college students and stereotypes about drinking. J. Appl. Soc. Psychol. 32: 885–907.
Barnes, G. M., and Farrell, M. P. (1992). Parental support and control as predictors of adolescent drinking, delinquency, and related problem behaviors. J. Marriage Fam. 54: 763–776.
Barnes, G. M., Farrell, M. P., and Dintcheff, B. A. (1997). Family socialization effects on alcohol abuse and related problem behaviors among female and male adolescents. In Wilsnack, S. and Wilsnack, R. (eds.), Gender and Alcohol. Rutgers Center of Alcohol Studies, Piscataway, NJ, pp. 156–175.
Barnes, G. M., Farrell, M. P., Welch, K. W., Uhteg, L., and Dintcheff, B. A. (1991). Description and Analysis of Methods Used in the Family and Adolescent Study. Research Institute on AlcoholismBuffalo, NY
Barnes, G. M., Reifman, A., Farrell, M. P., and Dintcheff, B. A. (2000). The effects of parenting on the development of adolescent alcohol misuse: A six-wave latent growth model. J. Marriage Fam. 62: 175–86.
Benda, B. B., and DiBlasio, F. A. (1994). An integration of theory: Adolescent sexual contacts. J. Youth Adolesc. 23: 403–420.
Blinde, E. M., and Taub, D. E. (1992). Women athletes as falsely accused deviants: Managing the lesbian stigma. Sociol. Q. 33: 521–533.
Brewer, B. W., Van Raalte, J. L., and Linder, D. E. (1993). Athletic identity: Hercules’ muscles or Achilles’ heel? Int. J. Sport Psych. 24: 237–54.
Brown, B. B., Eicher, S. A., and Petrie, S. (1986). The importance of peer group (‘crowd’) affiliation in adolescence. J. Adolesc. 9: 73–96.
Brown, B. B., Mory, M. S., and Kinney, D. (1994). Casting adolescent crowds in a relationship perspective: Caricature, channel, and context. In Montemayor, R., Adams, G., and Gullotta, T. P. (eds.), Personal Relationships During Adolescence. Sage, Thousand Oaks, CA, pp. 123–167.
Carroll, J. L., Volk, K. D., and Hyde, J. S. (1985). Differences between males and females in motives for engaging in sexual intercourse. Arch. Sex. Behav. 14: 131–139.
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (2002). Trends in sexual risk behaviors among high school students—United States, 1991–2001. MMWR Morb. Mortal. Wkly. Rep. 51(38): 856–859.
Coley, R. L., and Chase-Lansdale, P. L. (1998). Adolescent pregnancy and parenthood: Recent evidence and future directions. Am. Psychol. 53: 12–166.
Cooper, M. L., Shapiro, C. M., and Powers, A. M. (1998). Motivations for sex and risky sexual behavior among adolescents and young adults: A functional perspective. J. Pers. Soc. Psychol. 75: 1528–1558.
DeLamater, J. (1987). Gender differences in sexual scenarios. In Kelley, K. (ed.), Females, Males, and Sexuality: Theories and Research. SUNY Press, Albany, NY, pp. 127–139.
Dodge, T., and Jaccard, J. (2002). Participation in athletics and female sexual risk behavior: The evaluation of four causal structures. J. Adolesc. Res. 17: 42–67.
Dolcini, M. M., and Adler, N. E. (1994). Perceived competencies, peer group affiliation, and risk behavior among early adolescents. Health Psychol. 13: 496–506.
EDK Associates for Seventeen Magazine and the Ms. Foundation for Women. (1996). Teenagers Under Pressure EDK Associates New York.
Eitle, T. M., and Eitle, D. J. (2002). Just don’t do it: High school sports participation and young female adult sexual behavior. Sociol. Sport J. 19: 403–418.
Erkut, S., and Tracy, A. J. (2000). Protective Effects of Sports Participation on Girls’ Sexual Behavior Wellesley, MA. Working Paper No. 301, Center for Research on Women
Franklin, C., Grant, D., Corcoran, J., Miller, P. O., and Bultman, L. (1997). Effectiveness of prevention programs for adolescent pregnancy: A meta-analysis. J. Marriage Fam. 59: 551–67.
Furstenberg, F. F. Jr., Morgan, S. P., Moore, K. A., and Peterson, J. L. (1987). Race differences in the timing of adolescent intercourse. Am. Sociol. Rev. 52: 511–518.
Gagnon, J. H., and Simon, W. (1973). Sexual Conduct: The Social Sources of Human Sexuality. Aldine, Chicago, IL.
Harvey, S. M., and Spigner, C. (1995). Factors associated with sexual behavior among adolescents: A multivariate analysis. Adolescence 30(118): 253–264.
Holland, A., and Andre, T. (1994). Athletic participation and the social status of adolescent males and females. Youth Soc. 25: 388–407.
Hussong, A. M. (2002). Differentiating peer contexts and risk for adolescent substance use. J. Youth Adolesc. 31: 207–220.
Kane, M. J. (1988). The female athletic role as a status determinant within the social systems of high school adolescents. Adolescence 23: 253–264.
Kirby, D. (1997). No Easy Answers: Research Findings on Programs to Reduce Teen Pregnancy. The National Campaign to Prevent Teen Pregnancy, Washington, DC.
Kokotailo, P. K., Koscik, R. E., Henry, B. C., Fleming, M. F., and Landry, G. L. (1998). Health risk taking and human immunodeficiency virus risk in collegiate female athletes. J. Am. Coll. Health 46: 263–68.
La Greca, A. M., Prinstein, M. J., and Fetter, M. D. (2001). Adolescent peer crowd affiliation: Linkages with health-risk behaviors and close friendships. J. Pediatr. Psychol. 26: 131–43.
Lantz, C. D., and Schroeder, P. J. (1999). Endorsement of masculine and feminine gender roles: Differences between participation in and identification with the athletic role. J. Sport Behav. 22: 545–57.
Lauritsen, J. L. (1994). Explaining race and gender differences in adolescent sexual behavior. Soc. Forces 72: 859–886.
Laws, J. L., and Schwartz, P. (1977). Sexual Scripts: The Social Construction of Female Sexuality. Dryden, Hinsdale, IL.
Males, M. (1993). School-age pregnancy: Why hasn’t prevention worked? J. Sch. Health 63: 429–32.
Miller, B. C., and Moore, K. A. (1990). Adolescent sexual behavior, pregnancy, and parenting: Research through the 1980s. J. Marriage Fam. 52: 1025–1044.
Miller, B. C., Norton, M. C., Curtis, T., Hill, E. J., Schvaneveldt, P., and Young, M. H. (1997). The timing of sexual intercourse among adolescents: Family, peer, and other antecedents. Youth Soc. 29: 54–83.
Miller, K. E., Barnes, G. M., Melnick, M. J., Sabo, D., and Farrell, M. P. (2002). Gender and racial/ethnic differences in predicting adolescent sexual risk: Athletic participation vs. exercise. J. Health Soc. Behav. 43: 436–450.
Miller, K. E., Hoffman, J. H., Barnes, G. M., Farrell, M. P., Sabo, D., and Melnick, M. J. (2003). Jocks, gender, race, and adolescent problem drinking. J. Drug Educ. 33: 445–462.
Miller, K. E., Farrell, M. P., Sabo, D., Barnes, G. M., and Melnick, M. J. (1998a, March). Idle hands? Extracurricular activities, gender, and adolescent sexual behavior. Roundtable presented at the Annual Convention, Eastern Sociological Society, Philadelphia.
Miller, K. E., Sabo, D., Farrell, M. P., Barnes, G. M., and Melnick, M. J. (1998b). Athletic participation and sexual behavior in adolescents: The different worlds of boys and girls. J. Health Soc. Behav. 39: 108–23.
Miller, K. E., Sabo, D., Farrell, M. P., Barnes, G. M., and Melnick, M. J. (1999a, August). Athletic participation and adolescent sexual behavior: Where race and gender intersect. Paper presented at the Annual Convention, Society for the Study of Social Problems, Chicago.
Miller, K. E., Sabo, D., Farrell, M. P., Barnes, G. M., and Melnick, M. J. (1999b). Sports, sexual activity, contraceptive use, and pregnancy among female and male high school students: Testing cultural resource theory. Sociol. Sport J. 16: 366–87.
Newcomer, S., and Baldwin, W. (1992). Demographics of adolescent sexual behavior, contraception, pregnancy, and STDs. J. Sch. Health 62: 265–270.
Oliver, M. B., and Hyde, J. S. (1993). Gender differences in sexuality: A meta-analysis. Psychol. Bulletin 114: 29–51.
Olson, D. H., Portner, J., and Lavee, Y. (1985). FACES III. University of Minnesota, Family Social Science, St. Paul, MN.
Page, R. M., Hammermeister, J., Scanlan, A., and Gilbert, L. (1998). Is school sports participation a protective factor against adolescent health risk behaviors? J. Health Educ. 29: 186–192.
Pate, R. R., Trost, S. G., Levin, S., and Dowda, M. (2000). Sports participation and health-related behaviors among U.S. youth. Arch. Pediatr. Adolesc. Med. 154: 904–11.
Rome, E. S., Rybicki, L. A., and DuRant, R. H. (1998). Pregnancy and other risk behaviors among adolescent girls in Ohio. J. Adolesc. Health 22: 50–55.
Sabo, D., Miller, K. E., Farrell, M. P., Barnes, G. M., and Melnick, M. J. (1998). The Women’s Sports Foundation Report: Sport and Teen Pregnancy. Women’s Sports Foundation, East Meadow, NY.
Sabo, D., Miller, K. E., Farrell, M. P., Melnick, M. J., and Barnes, G. M. (1999). High school athletic participation, sexual behavior and adolescent pregnancy: A regional study. J. Adolesc. Health 25: 207–16.
Santelli, J. S., Lindberg, L. D., Abma, J., Sucoff, C., and Resnick, M. (2000). Adolescent sexual behavior: Estimates and trends from four nationally representative surveys. Fam. Plan. Perspect. 32: 156–165, 194.
Savage, M. P., and Holcomb, D. R. (1999). Adolescent female athletes’ sexual risk-taking behaviors. J. Youth Adolesc. 28: 595–602.
Simon, W., and Gagnon, J. H. (1986). Sexual scripts: Permanence and change. Arch. Sex. Beh. 15: 97–120.
Suitor, J. J., and Carter, R. S. (1999). Jocks, nerds, babes and thugs: A research note on regional differences in adolescent gender norms. Gender Issues 3: 87–101.
Suitor, J. J., and Reavis, R. (1995). Football, fast cars, and cheerleading: Adolescent gender norms, 1978–1989. Adolescence 30(118): 265–272.
Sussman, S., Dent, C. W., Stacy, A. W., Burciaga, C., Raynor, A., Turner, G. E., Charlin, V., Craig, S., Hansen, W. B., Burton, D., and Flay, B. R. (1990). Peer-group association and adolescent tobacco use. J. Abnorm. Psychol. 99: 349–52.
Thornton, A. (1990). The courtship process and adolescent sexuality. J. Fam. Issues 11: 239–273.
Tolman, D. L., and Porche, M. V. (2000). The adolescent femininity ideology scale: Development and validation of a new measure in girls. Psychol. Women Q. 24: 365–376.
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. (2000). Healthy People 2010: Understanding and Improving Health 2nd edn. U.S. Government Printing Office, Washington, DC.
White, C. P., and White, M. B. (1991). The Adolescent Family Life Act. J. Clin. Child Dev. 20: 50–70.
Wilson, B. (2002). The ‘anti-jock’ movement: Reconsidering youth resistance, masculinity, and sport culture in the age of the Internet. Sociol. Sport J. 19: 206–233.
Zill, N., Nord, C., and Loomis, L. (1995). Adolescent Time Use, Risky Behavior, and Outcomes: An Analysis of National Data. Westat, Rockville, MD.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Additional information
Research Scientist at the Research Institute on Addictions of the University at Buffalo. Received PhD in sociology from the University at Buffalo. Research interests include adolescent athletic involvement, gender, race, and health-risk behavior, particularly substance use.
Department Chair and Professor of Sociology at the University at Buffalo. Received PhD in sociology from Yale University. Research interests include the effects of families, friendships, and organizational participation on adolescent development and substance use.
Senior Research Scientist at the Research Institute on Addictions of the University at Buffalo. Received PhD in sociology from the University at Buffalo. Research interests include family influences on adolescent substance use, gambling, and other problem behaviors.
Professor of Physical Education and Sport at SUNY College at Brockport. Received PhD in physical education from Ohio State University. Research interests include the sociology of sport, social psychology of sport, sport group dynamics, and sport spectatorship/fandom.
Professor of Sociology at D’Youville College. Received PhD in sociology from the University at Buffalo. Research interests include the sociology of sport, gender, and men’s health.
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Miller, K.E., Farrell, M.P., Barnes, G.M. et al. Gender/Racial Differences in Jock Identity, Dating, and Adolescent Sexual Risk. J Youth Adolescence 34, 123–136 (2005). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10964-005-3211-0
Received:
Revised:
Accepted:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10964-005-3211-0