Abstract
Compulsive sexual behavior (CSB) is a prevalent disorder among adolescents. To date, most studies focused on the self-report assessment of individuals without assessing possible parental practices that might alleviate or exacerbate adolescents’ CSB. In the present research, I adopted the family systematic approach, which considers the effects of family context on children’s and adolescents’ development and examined whether and how parental (fathers’ and mothers’) support giving, communication, and restrictive mediation relate to children’s current and future severity of CSB. The sample comprised 300 Israeli families [triad of mothers, fathers, and one adolescent (39% boys, 61% girls; age 14–18)]. Results indicate that maternal support and paternal quality of communication with children significantly predicted lower severity of current and future CSB, respectively. These findings highlight an important and understudied topic in the hope of motivating additional researchers and practitioners to adopt a familial, microsystem perspective on healthy sexual development—a perspective that holds great promise in promoting normal sexual development and in decreasing risky sexual behaviors.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Adelson S, Bell R, Graff A, Goldenberg D, Haase E, Downey JI, Friedman RC (2012) Toward a definition of “hypersexuality” in children and adolescents. Psychodyn Psychiatr 40(3):481–503
Ashby SL, Arcari CM, Edmonson MB (2006) Television viewing and risk of sexual initiation by young adolescents. Arch Pediatr Adolesc Med 160(4):375–380
Barnes HL, Olson DH (1985) Parent-adolescent communication and the circumplex model. Child Dev 56:438–447
Bersamin M, Todd M, Fisher DA, Hill DL, Grube JW, Walker S (2008) Parenting practices and adolescent sexual behavior: a longitudinal study. J Marriage Fam 70(1):97–112
Biglan A, Metzler CW, Wirt R, Ary D, Noell J, Ochs L, Hood D (1990) Social and behavioral factors associated with high-risk sexual behavior among adolescents. J Behav Med 13(3):245–261
Bőthe B, Vaillancourt-Morel MP, Bergeron S, Demetrovics Z (2019) Problematic and non-problematic pornography use among LGBTQ adolescents: a systematic literature review. Curr Addict Rep 6(4):478–494
Bőthe B, Koós M, Tóth-Király I, Orosz G, Demetrovics Z (2019) Investigating the associations of adult ADHD symptoms, hypersexuality, and problematic pornography use among men and women on a largescale, non-clinical sample. J Sex Med 16(4):489–499
Boniel-Nissim M, Efrati Y, Dolev-Cohen M (2020) Parental mediation regarding children’s pornography exposure: the role of parenting style, protection motivation and gender. J Sex Res 57(1):42–51
Carnes P, Green B, Carnes S (2010) The same yet different: refocusing the sexual addiction screening test (SAST) to reflect orientation and gender. Sex Addict Compuls 17(1):7–30
Chen L, Jiang X, Luo X, Kraus SW, Bőthe B (2021) The role of impaired control in screening problematic pornography use: evidence from cross-sectional and longitudinal studies in a large help-seeking male sample. Psychol Addict Behav 36:537–546
Coakley TM, Randolph S, Shears J, Beamon ER, Collins P, Sides T (2017) Parent–youth communication to reduce at-risk sexual behavior: a systematic literature review. J Hum Behav Soc Environ 27(6):609–624
Coley RL, Medeiros BL, Schindler HS (2008) Using sibling differences to estimate effects of parenting on adolescent sexual risk behaviors. J Adolesc Health 43(2):133–140
Coley RL, Votruba-Drzal E, Schindler HS (2009) Fathers’ and mothers’ parenting predicting and responding to adolescent sexual risk behaviors. Child Dev 80(3):808–827
Collier KM, Coyne SM, Rasmussen EE, Hawkins AJ, Padilla-Walker LM, Erickson SE, Memmott-Elison MK (2016) Does parental mediation of media influence child outcomes? A meta-analysis on media time, aggression, substance use, and sexual behavior. Dev Psychol 52(5):798
Dalton MA, Adachi-Mejia AM, Longacre MR, Titus-Ernstoff LT, Gibson JJ, Martin SK, Beach ML (2006) Parental rules and monitoring of children’s movie viewing associated with children’s risk for smoking and drinking. Pediatrics 118(5):1932–1942
Davis EC, Friel LV (2001) Adolescent sexuality: disentangling the effects of family structure and family context. J Marriage Fam 63(3):669–681
De Crisce D (2013) Sexual addiction and hypersexual behaviors in adolescents. Clinical handbook of adolescent addiction. Wiley, pp 362–376
Dickenson JA, Gleason N, Coleman E, Miner MH (2018) Prevalence of distress associated with difficulty controlling sexual urges, feelings, and behaviors in the United States. JAMA Netw Open 1(7):e184468–e184468
DiIorio C, McCarty F, Resnicow K, Lehr S, Denzmore P (2007) REAL men: A group-randomized trial of an HIV prevention intervention for adolescent boys. Am J Public Health 97(6):1084–1089
Efrati Y, Dannon P (2018) Normative and clinical self-perceptions of sexuality and their links to psychopathology among adolescents. Psychopathology 51(6):380–389
Efrati Y, Mikulincer M (2018) Individual-based compulsive sexual behavior scale: Its development and importance in examining compulsive sexual behavior. J Sex Marital Ther 44(3):249–259
Efrati Y (2018) Adolescent compulsive sexual behavior: Is it a unique psychological phenomenon? J Sex Marital Ther 44(7):687–700
Efrati Y, Gola M (2018) Understanding and predicting profiles of compulsive sexual behavior among adolescents. J Behav Addict 7(4):1004–1014
Efrati Y (2018) Adolescents with a disposition toward compulsive sexual behavior: the role of shame in willingness to seek help and treatment. Sex Addict Compuls 25(1):28–45
Efrati Y, Gola M (2018) Compulsive sexual behavior: a twelve-step therapeutic approach. J Behav Addict 7(2):445–453
Efrati Y, Gola M (2018) Treating compulsive sexual behavior. Curr Sex Health Rep 10(2):57–64
Efrati Y (2019) God, I can’t stop thinking about sex! the rebound effect in unsuccessful suppression of sexual thoughts among religious adolescents. J Sex Res 56(2):146–155
Efrati Y (2019) A response to Pirutinsky’s (2018) religion and compulsive sexuality. J Sex Res 56(2):144–145
Efrati Y, Gerber Z, Tolmacz R (2019) The relation of intra-psychic and relational aspects of the self to compulsive sexual behavior. J Sex Marital Ther 45(7):618–631
Efrati Y, Gola M (2019) Adolescents’ compulsive sexual behavior: The role of parental competence, parents’ psychopathology, and quality of parent–child communication about sex. J Behav Addict 8(3):420–431
Efrati Y, Gola M (2019) The effect of early life trauma on compulsive sexual behavior among members of a 12-step group. J Sex Med 16(6):803–811
Efrati Y, Shukron O, Epstein R (2019) Compulsive sexual behavior and sexual offending: differences in cognitive schemas, sensation seeking, and impulsivity. J Behav Addict 8(3):432–441
Efrati Y (2020) Problematic and non-problematic pornography use and compulsive sexual behaviors among understudied populations: children and adolescents. Curr Addict Rep 7(1):68–75
Efrati Y, Boniel-Nissim M (2021) Parents’ psychopathology promotes the adoption of ineffective pornography-related parenting mediation strategies. J Sex Marital Ther 47(2):117–129
Efrati Y, Amichai-Hamburger Y (2021) Adolescents who solely engage in online sexual experiences are at higher risk for compulsive sexual behavior. Addict Behav 118:106874
Efrati Y, Shukron O, Epstein R (2021) Early maladaptive schemas are highly indicative of compulsive sexual behavior. Eval Health Prof 44(2):142–151
Efrati Y, Kraus SW, Kaplan G (2022) Common features in compulsive sexual behavior, substance use disorders, personality, temperament, and attachment—a narrative review. Int J Environ Res Public Health 19(1):296
Efrati Y, Gewirtz-Meydan A (2022) Just talk to them! The importance of teacher-pupil communication about child sexual abuse and harassments as preventative measure: Data from an Israeli sample of pupils and their home-room teachers. Sex Res Soc Policy 20:273–286
Ellis BJ, Bates JE, Dodge KA, Fergusson DM, John Horwood L, Pettit GS, Woodward L (2003) Does father absence place daughters at special risk for early sexual activity and teenage pregnancy? Child Dev 74(3):801–821
Ellis BJ, Schlomer GL, Tilley EH, Butler EA (2012) Impact of fathers on risky sexual behavior in daughters: a genetically and environmentally controlled sibling study. Dev Psychopathol 24(1):317–332
Erel O, Burman B (1995) Interrelatedness of marital relations and parent-child relations: a meta-analytic review. Psychol Bull 118(1):108
Fisher DA, Hill DL, Grube JW, Bersamin MM, Walker S, Gruber EL (2009) Televised sexual content and parental mediation: influences on adolescent sexuality. Media Psychol 12(2):121–147
Gola M, Lewczuk K, Potenza MN, Kingston DA, Grubbs JB, Stark R, Reid RC (2020) What should be included in the criteria for compulsive sexual behavior disorder? J Behav Addict 11:160–165
Griffin KR, Way BM, Kraus SW (2021) Controversies and clinical recommendations for the treatment of compulsive sexual behavior disorder. Curr Addict Rep 8(4):546–555
Grubbs JB, Perry SL, Wilt JA, Reid RC (2019) Pornography problems due to moral incongruence: an integrative model with a systematic review and meta-analysis. Arch Sex Behav 48(2):397–415
Grubbs JB, Hoagland KC, Lee BN, Grant JT, Davison P, Reid RC, Kraus SW (2020) Sexual addiction 25 years on: a systematic and methodological review of empirical literature and an agenda for future research. Clin Psychol Rev 82:101925
Guo W, Nathanson AI (2011) The effects of parental mediation of sexual content on the sexual knowledge, attitudes, and behaviors of adolescents in the US. J Child Media 5(4):358–378
Guilamo-Ramos V, Jaccard J, Dittus P, Bouris A, Holloway I, Casillas E (2007) Adolescent expectancies, parent-adolescent communication and intentions to have sexual intercourse among inner-city, middle school youth. Ann Behav Med 34(1):56–66
Hanewinkel R, Morgenstern M, Tanski SE, Sargent JD (2008) Longitudinal study of parental movie restriction on teen smoking and drinking in Germany. Addiction 103(10):1722–1730
Heiman T (2002) Parents of children with disabilities: resilience, coping, and future expectations. J Dev Phys Disabil 14(2):159–171
Huebner AJ, Howell LW (2003) Examining the relationship between adolescent sexual risk-taking and perceptions of monitoring, communication, and parenting styles. J Adolesc Health 33(2):71–78
Hwang Y, Choi I, Yum JY, Jeong SH (2017) Parental mediation regarding children’s smartphone use: Role of protection motivation and parenting style. Cyberpsychol Behav Soc Netw 20(6):362–368
Hwang Y, Jeong SH (2015) Predictors of parental mediation regarding children’s smartphone use. Cyberpsychol Behav Soc Netw 18(12):737–743
Jaccard J, Dittus PJ, Gordon VV (2000) Parent-teen communication about premarital sex: factors associated with the extent of communication. J Adolesc Res 15(2):187–208
Jones RK, Purcell A, Singh S, Finer LB (2005) Adolescents’ reports of parental knowledge of adolescents’ use of sexual health services and their reactions to mandated parental notification for prescription contraception. JAMA 293(3):340–348
Kapungu CT, Baptiste D, Holmbeck G, McBride C, Robinson-brown M, Sturdivant A, Paikoff R (2010) Beyond the “birds and the Bees”: gender differences in sex-related communication among urban African-American adolescents. Fam Process 49(2):251–264
Kafka MP (2010) Hypersexual disorder: A proposed diagnosis for DSM-V. Arch Sex Behav 39:377–400
Kim S, Jeong SH, Hwang Y (2012) Predictors of pro-environmental behaviors of American and Korean students: the application of the theory of reasoned action and protection motivation theory. Sci Commun 35:168–188
Koós M, Bőthe B, Orosz G, Potenza MN, Reid RC, Demetrovics Z (2021) The negative consequences of hypersexuality: revisiting the factor structure of the hypersexual behavior consequences scale and its correlates in a large, non-clinical sample. Addict Behav Rep 13:100321
Kraus SW, Krueger RB, Briken P, First MB, Stein DJ, Kaplan MS, Voon V, Abdo CHN, Grant JE, Atalla E, Reed GM (2018) Compulsive sexual behaviour disorder in the ICD-11. World Psychiatry 17(1):109–110. https://doi.org/10.1002/wps.20499
Lamb ME (2010) How do fathers influence children’s development? Let me count the ways. The role of the father in child development. Wiley, pp 1–26
Livingstone S, Helsper EJ (2008) Parental mediation of children’s internet use. J Broadcast Electron Media 52(4):581–599
Longmore MA, Manning WD, Giordano PC (2001) Preadolescent parenting strategies and teens’ dating and sexual initiation: a longitudinal analysis. J Marriage Fam 63(2):322–335
McBride CK, Paikoff RL, Holmbeck GN (2003) Individual and familial influences on the onset of sexual intercourse among urban African American adolescents. J Consult Clin Psychol 71(1):159
Merkle EC, You D, Preacher KJ (2016) Testing nonnested structural equation models. Psychol Methods 21(2):151–163
Miller KS, Forehand R, Kotchick BA (1999) Adolescent sexual behavior in two ethnic minority samples: the role of family variables. J Marriage Fam 61:85–98
Montgomery MJ (2005) Psychosocial intimacy and identity: from early adolescence to emerging adulthood. J Adolesc Res 20(3):346–374
Nikken P, de Graaf H (2013) Reciprocal relationships between friends’ and parental mediation of adolescents’ media use and their sexual attitudes and behavior. J Youth Adolesc 42(11):1696–1707
O’Sullivan LF, Thompson AE (2014) Sexuality in adolescence. APA handbook of sexuality and psychology person-based approaches, vol 1. American Psychological Association, pp 433–486
Padilla-Walker LM, Nelson LJ, Madsen SD, Barry CM (2008) The role of perceived parental knowledge on emerging adults’ risk behaviors. J Youth Adolesc 37(7):847–859
Palkovitz R (2002) Involved fathering and men’s adult development: Provisional balances. Erlbaum, Mahwah, NJ
Pleck JH (2010) Paternal involvement. The role of the father in child development. Wiley, p 58
Pithers WD, Gray A (1998) The other half of the story: children with sexual behavior problems. Psychol Public Policy Law 4(1–2):200
Ream GL, Savin-Williams RC (2005) Reciprocal associations between adolescent sexual activity and quality of youth-parent interactions. J Fam Psychol 19(2):171
Reid RC, Garos S, Fong T (2012) Psychometric development of the hypersexual behavior consequences scale. J Behav Addict 1(3):115–122
Reid RC, Carpenter BN, Draper ED, Manning JC (2010) Exploring psychopathology, personality traits, and marital distress among women married to hypersexual men. J Couple Relatsh Ther 9(3):203–222
Reid RC, Garos S, Carpenter BN (2011) Reliability, validity, and psychometric development of the hypersexual behavior inventory in an outpatient sample of men. Sex Addict Compuls 18(1):30–51
Roberts D, Coakley TM, Washington TJ, Kelley A (2014) Fathers’ perspectives on supports and barriers that affect their fatherhood role. SAGE Open 4(1):2158244014521818
Rodgers KB (1999) Parenting processes related to sexual risk-taking behaviors of adolescent males and females. J Marriage Fam 61:99–109
Romer D, Stanton B, Galbraith J, Feigelman S, Black MM, Li X (1999) Parental influence on adolescent sexual behavior in high-poverty settings. Arch Pediatr Adolesc Med 153(10):1055–1062
Rose A, Koo HP, Bhaskar B, Anderson K, White G, Jenkins RR (2005) The influence of primary caregivers on the sexual behavior of early adolescents. J Adolesc Health 37(2):135–144
Rosseel Y (2012) Lavaan: an R package for structural equation modeling and more version 0.6–7. J Stat Softw 48(2):1–36
Sassover E, Weinstein A (2020) Should compulsive sexual behavior (CSB) be considered as a behavioral addiction? A debate paper presenting the opposing view. J Behav Addict. https://doi.org/10.1556/2006.2020.00055
Shulman S, Connolly J (2013) The challenge of romantic relationships in emerging adulthood: reconceptualization of the field. Emerg Adulthood 1(1):27–39
Simons LG, Sutton TE, Simons RL, Gibbons FX, Murry VM (2016) Mechanisms that link parenting practices to adolescents’ risky sexual behavior: a test of six competing theories. J Youth Adolesc 45(2):255–270
Stattin H, Kerr M (2000) Parental monitoring: a reinterpretation. Child Dev 71(4):1072–1085
Suwarni L, Ismail D, Prabandari YS, Adiyanti MG (2015) Perceived parental monitoring on adolescence premarital sexual behavior in Pontianak City. Indonesia Int J Public Health Sci 4(4):211–219
Symons K, Ponnet K, Emmery K, Walrave M, Heirman W (2017) Parental knowledge of adolescents’ online content and contact risks. J Youth Adolesc 46(2):401–416
Tseng YH, Weng CS, Kuo SH, Chou FH, Yang YH, Chiang LC (2015) Gender Differences? Internet use and parent–child communication about sex toward sexual attitudes among early adolescents in Taiwan. J Nurs Res 23(2):125–134
Valkenburg PM, Krcmar M, Peeters AL, Marseille NM (1999) Developing a scale to assess three styles of television mediation: “Instructive mediation”, “restrictive mediation”, and “social coviewing.” J Broadcast Electron Media 43(1):52–66
Valkenburg PM, Piotrowski JT, Hermanns J, De Leeuw R (2013) Developing and validating the perceived parental media mediation scale: a self-determination perspective. Hum Commun Res 39(4):445–469
Wang YA, Rhemtulla M (2021) Power analysis for parameter estimation in structural equation modeling: a discussion and tutorial. Adv Methods Pract Psychol Sci 4(1):2515245920918253
Wilson DP, Regan DG, Heymer KJ, Jin F, Prestage GP, Grulich AE (2010) Serosorting may increase the risk of HIV acquisition among men who have sex with men. Sex Transm Dis 37(1):13–17
Woolf KD (2009) Children, parents and prosocial television for children: accounting for viewing and looking for effects. Doctoral dissertation. University of Pennsylvania
Wyckoff SC, Miller KS, Forehand R, Bau JJ, Fasula A, Long N, Armistead L (2008) Patterns of sexuality communication between preadolescents and their mothers and fathers. J Child Fam Stud 17(5):649–662
Zimet GD, Dahlem NW, Zimet SG, Farley GK (1988) The multidimensional scale of perceived social support. J Pers Assess 52(1):30–41
Zimmer-Gembeck MJ, Helfand M (2008) Ten years of longitudinal research on US adolescent sexual behavior: developmental correlates of sexual intercourse, and the importance of age, gender and ethnic background. Dev Rev 28(2):153–224
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Contributions
Y.E wrote the manuscript.
Corresponding author
Ethics declarations
Conflict of interest
None.
Rights and permissions
Springer Nature or its licensor (e.g. a society or other partner) holds exclusive rights to this article under a publishing agreement with the author(s) or other rightsholder(s); author self-archiving of the accepted manuscript version of this article is solely governed by the terms of such publishing agreement and applicable law.
About this article
Cite this article
Efrati, Y. Parental practices as predictors of adolescents’ compulsive sexual behavior: a 6-month prospective study. Eur Child Adolesc Psychiatry 33, 241–253 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00787-023-02155-2
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00787-023-02155-2