JOURNAL OF SEX RESEARCH, 51(3), 280–290, 2014

Copyright # The Society for the Scientific Study of Sexuality

ISSN: 0022-4499 print=1559-8519 online
DOI: 10.1080/00224499.2012.727914

Establishing and Adhering to Sexual Consent: The Association between

Reading Magazines and College Students’ Sexual Consent Negotiation
Stacey J. T. Hust
Murrow College of Communication, Washington State University

Emily Garrigues Marett

Management and Information Systems, Mississippi State University

Chunbo Ren
Department of Journalism, Central Michigan University
Paula M. Adams
Health and Wellness Services, Washington State University

Jessica F. Willoughby
School of Journalism and Mass Communication, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

Ming Lei and Weina Ran

Murrow College of Communication, Washington State University
Cassie Norman
Feinstein Kean Healthcare

Content analyses have cataloged the sexual scripts present in magazines largely because of
their perceived value to readers and their potential role as sex educators. Although it is gen-
erally agreed that magazines have the potential to influence sexual attitudes and behavioral
intentions, the effects of this medium are not as frequently researched as are other forms of
media. The current study tested whether exposure to magazines was associated with intentions
related to sexual consent negotiation. A survey of 313 college students indicated that exposure
to men’s magazines was significantly associated with lower intentions to seek sexual consent
and lower intentions to adhere to decisions about sexual consent. In contrast, exposure to
women’s magazines was significantly associated with greater intentions to refuse unwanted
sexual activity. Overall, the findings of this study further reinforce the critical need for respon-
sible and realistic portrayals of sex in entertainment media, specifically magazines.

Magazines advertise that they hold the answers to
some of our most intimate questions. In summer 2009,
magazines promised to improve readers’ sexual lives.
Cosmopolitan (June 2009) promised readers: ‘‘Best.
Sex. Ever. Our gutsy new tips are guaranteed to give
him the most badass orgasm imaginable. And you
too.’’ Maxim (July 2009) caught readers’ attention by
uncovering secrets about lingerie ‘‘complete with helpful
pictures.’’ Seventeen magazine (July 2009) provided 50
flirting tips to its teenage readers. Cover lines like these
are commonplace on today’s magazines. Sex has become
such a mainstay in magazine coverage that it is difficult
Correspondence should be addressed to Stacey J. T. Hust, Murrow
College of Communication, Washington State University, P.O. Box
642520, Pullman, WA 99164-2520. E-mail: sjhust@wsu.edu
to imagine a women’s or men’s magazine that does not
promise to unveil sexual secrets or provide tips for read-
ers to attain sexual prowess. When Cosmo (July 2009)
included an article about virgins, its cover appropriately
advertised, ‘‘Virgins in Cosmo—We thought this day
would never come.’’ It is clear—in the world portrayed
by popular women’s and men’s magazines—that sexual
activity is the norm. As Gill (2008) wrote, ‘‘In the post
Cosmopolitan (magazine) west, heroines must no longer
embody virginity but are required to be skilled at
a variety of sexual behaviors and practices’’ (p. 53).
Recent trends in print media have led to concern
over the future of the magazine industry (Glaser,
2005), but the number of magazine readers has actually
increased over the past decade (Association of Magazine
Media [MPA], 2011). Of all media outlets, the growth in
 READING MAGAZINES AND SEXUAL CONSENT NEGOTIATION
magazine audiences was second only to the growth in
the Internet, and young adult magazine readership has
remained strong even with an increase of new media
options. People aged 18 to 24 read a median of 8.9 issues
per month (MPA, 2011).
Although both men’s and women’s magazines include
sexual content, they promote vastly different sexual scripts
for their male and female readers (Carpenter, 1998;
Hust, Brown, & L’Engle, 2008). Content analyses have
cataloged the sexual scripts present in magazines largely
because of their perceived value to readers and their poten-
tial role as sex educators (e.g., Hust et al., 2008, Kettrey &
Emery, 2010; Taylor, 2005; Treise & Gotthoffer, 2002).
Adolescents and young adults often prefer magazines over
other sources for information about sexual topics (Treise
& Gotthoffer, 2002). One study argued teen magazines
have ‘‘claimed a position as counselor to the adolescent
girlfriend’’ (Kettrey & Emery, 2010, p. 1271).
The effects of exposure to these gendered sexual
scripts in magazines are largely unknown, however. Very
little research has examined the impact of viewing the
sexual scripts present in magazines on sexual attitudes
and behavioral intentions (e.g., Taylor, 2005; Walsh &
Ward, 2009). In a notable exception, Walsh and Ward
(2009) found that mainstream magazine reading was
associated with increased sexual health knowledge, safe
sex self-efficacy, and consistency of condom use. One
of the most fundamental sexual behaviors, however, is
sexual consent seeking, which Walsh and Ward did not
address. Sexual consent is an individual’s verbal or
nonverbal expression of agreement to engage in sexual
activity (Hall, 1995; Hickman & Muehlenhard, 1999;
Walker, 1997). The ability to successfully communicate
with one’s sexual partner about issues regarding consent
is an integral component to developing healthy, consen-
sual sexual relationships. It is unclear, however, how
predominant sexual scripts influence individuals’ under-
standing and intentions related to sexual consent negoti-
ation (e.g., Beres, 2007). If readers internalize and accept
the sexual scripts currently present in men’s and women’s
magazine content, it could have an impact on their
perceptions of consent and how it should be obtained.
The current study used a survey of 313 college students
to determine whether magazine consumption was asso-
ciated with readers’ intentions to seek and successfully
negotiate consent for sexual activity.
Negotiating Sexual Consent
Sexual consent negotiation refers to the actions
involved with initiating sexual activity, refusing or con-
senting to sexual activity, and adhering to sexual consent
decisions (e.g., Humphreys, 2004). Establishing that sex-
ual consent is present is important because it is central
to identifying whether sexual activity is consensual
or nonconsensual. Typically a clear, verbal ‘‘yes’’ is
considered the clearest form of sexual consent and a
clear, verbal ‘‘no’’ is the clearest rejection of sexual
activity, but research has identified that sexual consent
is often negotiated through a series of nonverbal and
verbal cues (Hall, 1995; Hickman & Muehlenhard,
1999; Humphreys, 2004; Lim & Roloff, 1999; O’Byrne,
Hansen, & Rapley, 2008; O’Byrne, Rapley, & Hansen,
2006; Walker, 1997). Rape or sexual assault occurs when
an individual either does not obtain consent or disregards
a refusal to engage in sexual activity. In much of the
United States, consent to sexual activity cannot legally
be given by an individual who is incapacitated (e.g.,
intoxicated, asleep, or unconscious; Krebs, Lindquist,
Warner, Fisher, & Martin, 2007).
Although research indicates men are more likely than
women to initiate sexual activity (Blumstein & Schwartz,
1983; Impett & Peplau, 2003; O’Sullivan & Byers, 1992),
fewer studies have focused on men’s ability or willingness
to adhere to their partners’ consent or refusal of sexual
advances. In an experimental study, the length of time
it took male participants to identify refusals of sexual
advances was associated with the timing of and rationale
provided for the refusal (Van Wie & Gross, 2001). Men’s
responses to their partners’ rejections of sexual activity
were also associated with whether they became sexually
coercive. Men who are angered or confused by their part-
ners’ refusals are more likely to try to coerce their sexual
partners into participating in sexual activity (Wright,
Norton, & Matusek, 2010).
Even when sexual consent is present, however, the
sexual activity may not be wanted by the individuals
involved. In 2007, Peterson and Muehlenhard published
a new model of sexual consent that distinguished
between wanting to participate in sexual activity and
consenting to sexual activity. A survey of undergraduate
students indicated that 55% of female participants and
35% of male participants had consented to unwanted
sexual activity (Sprecher, Hatfield, Cortese, Potapova,
& Levistskaya, 1994). Although consensual unwanted
sex is not defined as sexual assault (e.g., Peterson &
Muehlenhard, 2007) it can have negative effects on the
individuals involved (e.g., Erickson & Rapkin, 1991).
Individuals consent to unwanted sexual activity for
a variety of reasons. For example, an individual may
privilege sexual arousal over fear of pregnancy or dis-
comfort with a setting. Individuals report consenting
to unwanted sexual activity to satisfy their partners’
needs (Impett & Peplau, 2003; Morgan, Johnson, &
Sigler, 2006; O’Sullivan & Allgeier, 1998), to prevent
relationship problems and maintain the relationship
(Impett & Peplau, 2003; Morgan et al., 2006; O’Sullivan
& Allgeier, 1998), to avoid conflict with their partners
(Impett & Peplau, 2003), or because things got out of
control (Morgan et al., 2006).
In-depth focus groups indicate women understand the
myriad ways to refuse unwanted sexual activity, and
men are capable of recognizing even subtle rejections of
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 HUST ET AL.
sexual activity (Kitzinger & Frith, 1999; O’Byrne et al.,
2008). Some scholars assert that the different sexual
scripts for men and women play a significant role in
sexual coercion and assault (Bay-Cheng & Eliseo-Arras,
2008; Humphreys & Herold, 1997; Walker, 1997). Sexual
scripts are cognitive frameworks that serve as guidelines
for behavior in sexual situations (Byers, 1996). According
to heterosexual scripting theory, dominant sexual scripts
promote power inequalities between women and men
(Kim et al., 2007; Tolman, Kim, Schooler, & Sorsoli,
2007). These scripts hold females responsible for allowing
sexual activity to occur; therefore their role in consent
activities is to give or deny consent (Humphreys &
Herold, 2007). Females are also responsible for setting
limits on sexual activity, such as resisting approaches to
avoid being viewed as promiscuous (Tolman et al.,
2007). In contrast, the traditional sexual script for males
is to assertively seek out sexual activity and obtain
consent (Humphreys & Herold, 2007; Kim et al., 2007).
Thus, traditional sexual scripts suggest men are always
interested in sex while women lack independent sexual
interests and motives (Bay-Cheng & Eliseo-Arras, 2008).
Further, women are expected to be physically and beha-
viorally pleasing to men (Bay-Cheng & Eliseo-Arras,
2008; Kiefer & Sanchez, 2007). Such power inequalities
may help explain why individuals sometimes consent to
unwanted sexual activity (Bay-Cheng & Eliseo-Arras,
2008; Impett & Peplau, 2003; Katz & Tirone, 2009; Kiefer
& Sanchez, 2007; Morgan et al., 2006; Walker, 1997).
Sexual scripts are influenced by cultural norms, many
of which are communicated through the mass media
(Bay-Cheng & Eliseo-Arras, 2008; Humphreys &
Herold, 1997; Kim et al., 2007; Tolman et al., 2007;
Walker, 1997). Bussey and Bandura’s (1999) social cog-
nitive theory of gender development helps explain the
media’s role in the dissemination of dominant sexual
scripts. Essentially, the media, in conjunction with
parents and peers, help to define sexual scripts for both
women and men (Bussey & Bandura, 1999; Walker,
1997). Media also influence individuals’ acceptance of
sexual scripts (Ward, 2002). For example, Ward (2002)
found that exposure to television portrayals of tra-
ditional sexual scripts increased endorsement of stereo-
typical beliefs about relationships (e.g., men are driven
by sex). Magazines are one source of information
related to sexual behaviors that may influence the sexual
scripts individuals establish as norms for sexual beha-
vior (Walker, 1997; Walsh & Ward, 2009). In an expan-
sion of this line of research, the current study tested
whether exposure to magazines was associated with sex-
ual consent negotiation intentions.
Sexual Scripts in Magazines and Potential Effects
Regardless of the magazine genre, advice that directs
readers on how to achieve ‘‘great sex’’ typically reinforces
282
narrow sexual scripts (Carpenter, 1998; Hust et al., 2008;
Ménard & Kleinplatz, 2008; Stibbe, 2004; Taylor, 2005,
2006; Walsh-Childers, Gotthoffer, & Lepre, 2002). In
these magazines, males are typically depicted as being
obsessed with sex and are shown proving their mascu-
linity through sexual assertiveness; females, on the other
hand, are held responsible for safeguarding their reputa-
tions by avoiding promiscuity while also sexually pleasing
men (Alexander, 2003; Hust et al., 2008; Krassas,
Blauwkamp, & Wesselink, 2001, 2003; Stibbe, 2004;
Taylor, 2005, 2006). Articles reinforce the idea that men
will always want sex and that it is the woman’s role to com-
municate and maintain sexual relationships by keeping
men satisfied (Carpenter, 1998, Kim & Ward, 2004).
Some research indicates that alternative sexual scripts
are also presented in magazines, primarily toward
women. Some women’s magazines feature sexually
assertive women who attract men and fulfill their own
sexual desires (Kim & Ward, 2004). Sometimes these
alternative scripts are presented alongside traditional
scripts. Teen girl magazines, for example, have been
criticized for providing readers with contradictory
messages. These magazines promote looking and behav-
ing provocatively to attract sexual attention while
also encouraging readers to abstain from sex (Durham,
1998). Similarly, teen readers are encouraged to be inde-
pendent and yet submissive to men (Kim & Ward, 2004).
In contrast, even scripts that appear to emphasize
alternative scripts in men’s magazines ultimately seem
to reinforce traditional sexual scripts. For example,
Taylor (2005) found the most frequent subject of articles
about sex in lad magazines dealt with ‘‘what women
want,’’ which may seem to promote an alternative script
(p. 161). Yet these discussions of what women want were
focused on improving a man’s sex life by increasing the
frequency with which sexual activity occurs (Taylor,
2005). Thus although this script may seem to deviate
from the traditional script, closer examination indicates
it still reinforces the notion that men actively pursue
sexual activity.
The media are an important source of sexual infor-
mation for adolescents (Hust et al., 2008; L’Engle,
Brown, & Kenneavy, 2005; Ward, 2003). A large body
of work indicates that mass media use is associated with
sexual attitudes and norms (e.g., Rivadeneyra & Lebo,
2008; ter Bogt, Engels, Bogers, & Kloosterman, 2010;
Zhang, Miller, & Harrison, 2008). Overall, this research
suggests that exposure to traditional sexual scripts in
mass media correlated to adherence to more traditional
gender roles in dating relationships. Exposure to media’s
traditional sexual scripts is also associated with thoughts
about coercion and rape myths (e.g., Kaestle, Halpern,
& Brown, 2007; Kahlor & Eastin, 2011; Kahlor &
Morrison, 2007; Kistler & Lee, 2010). Individuals who
watch a greater amount of television, for example, are
more likely to be accepting of rape myths (Kahlor &
Eastin, 2011; Kahlor & Morrison, 2007).
 READING MAGAZINES AND SEXUAL CONSENT NEGOTIATION
Given these associations, researchers are also con-
cerned that frequent exposure to the traditional sexual
scripts presented in the media will affect an individual’s
perception of what is ‘‘normal’’ sexual behavior, which
will then affect subsequent behavior (Brown & L’Engle,
2009). A large body of work has tried to determine
whether exposure to sexual media content is associated
with adolescent sexual activity, primarily age of sexual
debut. Much of this research identifies that exposure
to sexual media is associated with age of sexual
initiation (e.g., Brown et al., 2006; Collins et al., 2004),
yet some scholars have found little to no effect of the
media on this behavior (Steinberg & Monahan, 2011).
In their discussion of these inconsistent findings, Ward,
Epstein, Caruthers, and Merriwether (2011) argued that
the media’s effects on sexual behavior are perhaps more
nuanced and that such ‘‘links are neither universal nor
guaranteed’’ (p. 592). The authors suggested that
researchers expand their conceptualization of sexual
media content to include gendered scripts, which would
allow researchers to study the media’s influence on parti-
cular aspects of sexual functioning (Ward et al., 2011).
The current study seeks to further this line of work by
examining the association between magazine reading
and specific aspects of sexual consent negotiation.
Although it is generally agreed that magazines have
the potential to influence sexual attitudes and behaviors,
the effects of this medium are not as frequently
researched as are other forms of media. Most research
examining the effects of exposure to sexual content use
aggregate measures of media exposure, and rarely is
exposure to magazines the sole focus (for an exception,
see Walsh & Ward, 2009). However, the few studies that
have included exposure to magazines within the aggre-
gate media exposure measures have found exposure is
associated with sexual behavior (Bleakley, Hennessy,
Fishbein, & Jordan, 2008; Brown et al., 2006). Magazine
exposure has also been linked to knowledge, attitudes,
and beliefs related to sexual topics (Bleakley, Hennessy,
Fishbein, & Jordan, 2009; Kim & Ward, 2004; Taylor,
2006). Men’s exposure to the sexual scripts present in
men’s magazines was associated with greater acceptance
of nonrelational sex and a greater number of both casual
and total sexual partners (Ward et al., 2011).
Hypotheses
Based on the previous literature which has consist-
ently identified that the content of men’s magazines
reinforce traditional male scripts that support aggressive
sexual behaviors, we predicted that exposure to men’s
magazines would be associated with lower intentions
to engage in sexual consent negotiation behaviors. Pre-
vious literature has identified that women’s magazines
include inconsistent messages about sexual relation-
ships; therefore, we predicted that women’s magazines
would be associated with sexual consent negotiation
intentions, but we did not specify the direction of these
hypotheses. Therefore, the following hypotheses were
tested and answered:
H1. Exposure to men’s magazines would be associated
with lower intentions to seek consent for sexual
activity.
H2. Exposure to women’s magazines would be associa-
ted with participants’ intentions to seek consent for
sexual activity.
H3. Exposure to men’s magazines would be associated
with lower intentions to refuse unwanted sexual
activity.
H4. Exposure to women’s magazines would be associa-
ted with participants’ intentions to refuse unwanted
sexual activity.
H5. Exposure to men’s magazines would be associated
with lower intentions to adhere to decisions related
to sexual consent.
H6. Exposure to women’s magazines would be associa-
ted with participants’ adherence to decisions related
to sexual consent.
Method
Participants
Given that research has shown the freshman popu-
lation is most at risk for sexual assault (Fisher, Cullen,
& Turner, 2000), the sampling frame consisted of 2,071
freshmen living in residence halls at a large Northwestern
university in which freshmen are required to live on
campus. Students were mailed a prenotification letter in
spring 2010 that included a unique identification number
to access the online survey. In the e-mail message,
students were told that the study was about romantic rela-
tionships and sexual assault on college campuses. Over the
course of one month, as many as four e-mail reminders
and one phone reminder were delivered to each student
who had not completed the survey. Participants who com-
pleted the survey were entered into a drawing to win one
of five $50 gift certificates to the campus bookstore.
A total of 456 students responded to the survey for a
response rate of 22%. This response rate is common for
Internet surveys as suggested by meta-analytic research
(Shih & Fan, 2007, 2008). Of the 456 students, 143
responses were dropped due to failure to complete the
large majority of the survey. The final sample consisted
of 313 students who completed nearly the entire survey,
for a completion rate of 15%. The mean age of the sample
was 18.57 (SD ¼ 0.86); 39% of the participants were male
(n ¼ 123) and 61% were female (n ¼ 190). The majority
(81.2%) of the participants were Caucasian (n ¼ 254),
followed by 12.5% Asian American (n ¼ 39), 6.7%
Latino=a (n ¼ 21), 4.5% African American (n ¼ 14), and
2.2% American Indian (n ¼ 7). These demographics are
283
 HUST ET AL.

comparable to those of the general student body at the
institution where the study took place, with the exception
that females were represented more frequently within this
sample.
Measures
Sexual consent-related behavior intentions. The
participants were asked on a 7-point Likert-type scale
how much they agreed or disagreed with 11 statements
about their intentions to negotiate sexual consent. Items
were adapted from existing studies or developed for the
purposes of this study (Banyard, Moynihan, & Plante,
2007; Fabiano, Perkins, Berkowitz, Linkenbach, &
Stark, 2003). All 11 items were entered into an explora-
tory factor analysis using a principal component analy-
sis (PCA) with orthogonal rotation (varimax). The
criteria for determining a factor was based on a loading
of greater than .60 on one factor and a loading of less
than .40 on the other factors. The initial analysis showed
that one item cross-loaded, and thus it was excluded
from the analysis. A new factor analysis was performed
including the remaining 10 items.
The factor extraction process in the analysis showed
that three components had eigenvalues over Kaiser’s
(1974) criterion of 1 and explained 75.29% of the vari-
ance in combination. Three factors representing seeking
consent for sexual activity, refusing unwanted sexual
activity, and adhering to sexual consent were identified
(refer to Table 1). All three individual scales had accept-
able reliabilities, and mean scores were calculated to
represent the score for each scale (Table 1).
Exposure to magazines. Participants were asked on
a 7-point Likert-type scale how often (1 ¼ Not at all
and 7 ¼ Very often) they read seven different magazine
genres: women’s magazines, teen girl magazines, men’s
magazines, lad magazines, sports magazines, news
magazines, and general interest magazines. An explora-
tory factor analysis was conducted to help researchers
assess whether these genres were distinct factors. The
sports magazine genre was not included in the current
analysis because these magazines are narrowly targeted
to individuals who follow the industry and its events.
We used the same analysis criterion for the factor analy-
sis as was used for the sexual consent items.
The factor extraction process in the analysis showed
that three components had eigenvalues over 1 and
explained 80.84% of the variance in combination.
Women’s magazines and teen girl magazines loaded
highly on one factor (the loading was .93 and .92, respect-
ively). Men’s magazines and lad magazines loaded on one
factor (the loading was .89 and .90, respectively). Based on
these high loadings, the measures utilized for men’s maga-
zine and lad magazine exposure were averaged together to
form an overall measure of exposure to men’s magazines.
Similarly, the measures for women’s magazines and teen
girl magazines were averaged together to form an overall
measure of exposure to women’s magazines. News maga-
zines and general interest magazines loaded highly on the
third factor (the loading was .79 and .87, respectively).
Given our interest in magazines’ influence on sexual con-
sent negotiation, we decided not to include the news=
general interest magazines in the current study because
prior studies have found they include very little sexual
content (e.g., Reichert & Carpenter, 2004).
Participants were given examples of magazine titles
based on previous literature and the published target
demographics of the magazine title. The examples
provided for the women’s magazine genre were Cosmo
and Good Housekeeping and for the teen girl genre were
Seventeen and CosmoGirl. The two items were correlated
at .73 (p < .001) and were averaged together to form an
overall measure of exposure to women’s magazines (refer

Table 1. Factor Analysis Loadings of Sexual Consent Behavior Intentions

Seeking Sexual Refusing Unwanted Adhering to

Type of Content Consent Sexual Activity Sexual Consent

1. I would ask my partner for consent before engaging in sexual activity. .79 .03 .27
2. I would stop and ask if everything is okay if my partner doesn’t respond to my sexual .67 .23 .39
advances.
3. I would verbally confirm that my partner consents before engaging in sexual activity. .86 .14 .15
4. I would not have sex when my partner and I are too intoxicated to give consent. .72 .20 .08
5. I would feel confident refusing someone’s sexual advances. .07 .85 .15
6. I would refuse unwanted sexual intimacy with my date even if it may destroy the .23 .85 .19
romantic atmosphere.
7. I would not give in to pressure—either verbal or physical—to have sex. .19 .81 .27
8. I would rather have no sex than force myself on someone. .24 .20 .86
9. I would respect my partner and stop sexual activity when asked to even when I am .17 .20 .89
already aroused.
10. I would always stop the first time my date says ‘‘no’’ to sexual activity. .28 .26 .83
Eigenvalues 1.46 1.16 4.90
Percentage of variance 14.63 11.63 49.04
Cronbach’s a .81 .84 .89

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 READING MAGAZINES AND SEXUAL CONSENT NEGOTIATION
to Table 2). The examples provided for the men’s
magazine genre were Men’s Health, Field and Stream,
and Playboy, and the examples for the lad magazine
genre were Maxim, FHM, and Stuff. The two items were
correlated at .63 (p < .001) and were averaged together to
form an overall measure of exposure to men’s magazines
(Table 2).
Control measure: Rape myth acceptance. Rape
myths are defined as a set of prejudicial, stereotyped,
or false beliefs about rape, rape victims, and perpetra-
tors (Burt, 1980). Commonly held rape myths include
that rape cannot occur between two people who are in
a relationship and that women who engage in more inti-
mate sexual activity are consenting to sex, regardless of
potentially contradictory verbal communication (Burt,
1980). Previous research has identified that high accept-
ance of rape myths is significantly associated with sexual
consent negotiation (Abbey & Harnish, 1995; Lanier,
2001). The purpose of the current study was to test the
relationship between magazine exposure and intentions
related to sexual consent negotiation. To account for
the contribution of rape myth acceptance and to identify
the unique contribution of magazine exposure, we con-
trolled for participants’ acceptance of rape myths.
Measurement of this construct was a 17-item short-
form scale adapted from the well-established 45-item
Illinois Rape Myth Acceptance Scale (IRMA; Payne,
Lonsway, & Fitzgerald, 1999). The IRMA–Short Form
differs from the 45-item IRMA in that it was designed
to assess only general rape myth acceptance; psycho-
metric analyses indicated that the IRMA–Short Form
is a more than sufficient proxy for the IRMA when asses-
sing general rape myth acceptance (Payne et al., 1999).
Participants were asked on a 7-point Likert-type scale
(1 ¼ Strongly disagree and 7 ¼ Strongly agree) how much
they agreed or disagreed with 17 statements that covered
Table 2. Descriptive Statistics for Key Measures
Total Sample
Type of Content Mean (SD)
Seeking consent for sexual activity 6.00 (1.25)
Refusing unwanted sexual activity 6.27 (1.07)
Adhering to sexual consent 6.62 (.93)
Rape myth acceptance (17 items) 2.52 (1.10)
Exposure to women’s magazines 2.55 (1.95)
Women’s magazines (e.g., Cosmo, Good 2.68 (2.21)
Housekeeping)
Teen girl magazines (e.g., Seventeen, CosmoGirl) 2.41 (1.99)
Exposure to men’s magazines 1.30 (.82)
Men’s magazines (e.g., Men’s Health, Field and 1.34 (.99)
Stream, Playboy)
Lad magazines (e.g., Maxim, FHM, Stuff) 1.26 (.81)
Note. The scales range from 1 (Strongly disagree) to 7 (Strongly agree)
for consent-related behavior intention indices and rape myth accept-
ance index. The scales range from 1 (Never) to 7 (Very often) for
exposure to women’s magazines and men’s magazines.
seven major areas of rape myth acceptance: (1) She asked
for it; (2) It wasn’t really rape; (3) He didn’t mean to; (4)
She wanted it; (5) She lied; (6) Rape is a trivial event; and
(7) Rape is a deviant event. The Cronbach’s a for the rape
myth acceptance scale short form was .93, indicating an
acceptable reliability.
Results
Overall, participants reported they intended to seek
consent for sexual activity, to refuse unwanted sexual
activity, and to adhere to sexual consent. The relation-
ships among the key variables in the study are shown
in Table 3. To test all hypotheses, the authors used
hierarchical ordinary least squares (OLS) regression.1
Gender was entered in the first block, rape myth accept-
ance was entered in the second block, and exposure to
men’s and women’s magazines were entered in the third
block of the regressions. Regressions were also conduc-
ted separately for men and women, and the results were
similar to the results from the regressions conducted on
the entire sample; therefore, we report the regressions
for the entire sample. In addition, age and race were
added to the first block as additional control measures,
but the results were not significant so we did not include
these measures in the final analysis.
In regard to hypothesis 1 and hypothesis 2, a hierarch-
ical OLS regression was conducted with intentions to
seek sexual consent as the dependent measure. Gender
was not significantly associated with intentions to seek
consent for sexual activity. Rape myth acceptance was
associated with lower intentions to seek consent for
sexual activity, b ¼
.25, t(263) ¼
3.94, p < .001.
Hypothesis 1 predicted that men’s magazines would be
associated with lower intentions to seek sexual consent,
which was supported, b ¼
.16, t(261) ¼
2.58, p <.05.
Exposure to women’s magazines, however, was not asso-
ciated with seeking sexual consent, so hypothesis 2 was
not supported (refer to Table 4).
In regard to hypothesis 3 and hypothesis 4, a hierarch-
ical OLS regression was conducted with intentions to ref-
use unwanted sexual activity as the dependent measure.
Being male (gender) was associated with lower intentions
to refuse unwanted sexual activity, b ¼
.47, t(264) ¼

3.65, p < .001. Rape myth acceptance was also associa-
ted with lower intentions to refuse unwanted sexual
activity, b ¼
.28, t(263) ¼
4.50, p < .001. Hypothesis
3 predicted that exposure to men’s magazines would be
associated with lower intentions to refuse unwanted
1
We also computed regressions using maximum likelihood para-
meter estimates with standard errors and a mean-adjusted chi-square
test statistic that are robust to nonnormality (Muthén & Muthén,
2010; Satorra & Bentler, 2001). The results are consistent with those
from the hierarchical OLS regressions that are reported in this article.
In the regressions with robust standard errors, one-tailed p values were
used for directional hypotheses and two-tailed p values were used for
research questions.
285
 HUST ET AL.

Table 3. Pearson Correlation Matrix among Key Variables

Variable 1 2 3 4 5 6 7

1 Intentions to seek consent

2 Refusing unwanted sexual activity 0.41
3 Adherence to sexual consent 0.53 0.49
4 Rape myth acceptance
0.23
0.30
0.28
5 Men’s magazine exposure
0.27
0.24
0.29 0.18
6 Women’s magazine exposure
0.06 0.15 0.03
0.11 0.03
7 Gender (male)
0.02
0.17
0.12 0.34 0.25
0.59
  
p < .05. p < .01. p < .001.

Table 4. Influence of Men’s and Women’s Magazines on Sexual Consent Negotiation

Intentions to Refusing Unwanted Adherence to Decisions Related

Seek Consent Sexual Activity to Sexual Consent

Block 1 Block 2 Block 3 Block 1 Block 2 Block 3 Block 1 Block 2 Block 3

Variable b b b b b b b b b

Gender (male)a
.08 .11 .17
.47
.28 .00
.23
.07 .06
Rape myth acceptance
.25
.23
.28
.29
.26
.26
Men’s magazine exposure
.16
.09
.15
Women’s magazine exposure
.03 .18 .06
R2 .00 .06 .08 .05 .12 .14 .02 .08 .10
Adjusted R2 .00 .05 .07 .04 .109 .13 .01 .07 .08
F for R2 .31 7.93 5.88 13.29 17.26 10.62 4.06 10.91 6.96
Change in R2 .00 .06 .03 .05 .07 .02 .02 .06 .02
F for changes in R2 .31 15.52 3.67 13.29 20.26 3.64 4.06 17.51 2.86
a
The unstandardized coefficients were reported for gender.

p < .05.  p < .01.  p < .001.

sexual activity, but this was not supported. In contrast,
reading women’s magazines was associated with greater
intentions to refuse unwanted sexual activity, b ¼ .18,
t(261) ¼ 2.47, p < .05. Hypothesis 4 was supported
(Table 4).
A hierarchical OLS regression with intentions to
adhere to decisions related to sexual consent was conduc-
ted to test hypotheses 5 and 6. Being male (gender)
was significantly associated with lower intentions to
adhere to decisions related to sexual consent, b ¼
.23,
t(265) ¼
2.02, p < .05. Rape myth acceptance was also
associated with lower intentions to adhere to decisions
about sexual consent, b ¼
.26, t(264) ¼
4.19, p < .001.
Hypothesis 5 predicted that exposure to men’s maga-
zines would be associated with lower intentions to adhere
to decisions related to sexual consent, which was sup-
ported, b ¼
.15, t(262) ¼
2.36, p < .05. Hypothesis 6
predicted that exposure to women’s magazines would be
associated with intentions to adhere to decisions related
to sexual consent, but this was not supported. Exposure
to women’s magazines was not associated with intentions
to adhere to decisions related to sexual consent (Table 4).
Discussion
There is compelling evidence that college students
living on campus are vulnerable to sexual assault (Fisher
et al., 2000). Developmental research and family
communication researchers alike argue that the first year
of college constitutes a ‘‘unique transitional period’’ that
is often characterized by an increase in unhealthy beha-
viors, including alcohol consumption and associated
behaviors, such as sexual violence (White et al., 2006).
In the absence of alternative resources to guide their
decision making related to sexual relationships, students
often rely on sexual scripts conveyed, in part, through
mass media to determine appropriate behavior.
Examining the influence of both men’s and women’s
magazines allowed us to identify the subtle differences
in exposure to the sexual scripts prevalent in each of
the magazine genres. The results of the current study con-
firm results from existing research, as being male was
associated with lower intentions to refuse unwanted sex-
ual activity and lower intentions to adhere to decisions
related to consent. Rape myth acceptance was negatively
associated with all three aspects of sexual consent negoti-
ation intentions, and future studies should consider
whether rape myth acceptance mediates the relationship
between magazine exposure and intentions related to
sexual consent negotiation. Overall, the results confirm
that exposure to the dominant heterosexual scripts in
men’s magazines is negatively associated with consent
negotiation intentions. However, exposure to women’s
magazines is associated with some positive intentions.

286
 READING MAGAZINES AND SEXUAL CONSENT NEGOTIATION
Men’s magazines promote men as sexual aggressors,
and it appears that readers internalize this message.
Readers of men’s magazines report lower intentions to
ask their sexual partners for consent for sexual activity
and lower intentions to adhere to sexual consent deci-
sions. These results contribute to what is already known
about the association of men’s magazines with sexual
behavior. Ward and colleagues (2011) found that read-
ing men’s magazines was associated with having a great-
er number of casual sexual partners. In light of such
findings, the results of the current study suggest that
men who read men’s magazines are less likely to ask
for consent for these sexual encounters and less likely
to adhere to their partners’ sexual consent decisions.
This is troubling given that sexual consent negotiation
is necessary for consensual sex.
Given the content of men’s magazines, we expected
that readers would be less likely to report refusing part-
ners’ sexual advances. Yet exposure to men’s magazines
was not associated with intentions to refuse unwanted
sexual activity. This may be because men’s magazines
infrequently discuss refusal of sexual activity and
instead focus on men engaging in sexual activity. Future
research should explore intentions related to sexual con-
sent in concert with sexual behavior in an attempt to
better understand the association between men’s maga-
zines and sexual consent negotiation.
In contrast, exposure to women’s magazines was
positively associated with intentions to refuse unwanted
sexual activity. Prior research has suggested that maga-
zines portray women as passive sexual objects who must
respond to men’s desires (Kim & Ward, 2004; Krassas
et al., 2001), yet the results from the current study, in
part, suggest that readers of women’s magazines are also
gleaning messages that promote sexual agency. The
current study’s results provide additional support for
existing research that suggests exposure to women’s
magazines is associated with positive outcomes related
to sexual health behaviors. For example, previous
research has demonstrated that teen girl magazines
often discuss female responsibility in making decisions
about sexual activity. In addition, women’s magazines
discuss lack of desire for sex (Walsh-Childers et al.,
2002), which may help women refuse sexual activity that
they do not want. This may be promising news for sex-
ual health educators because magazines may serve as an
important source of sexual information—especially
among girls (Sutton, Brown, Wilson, & Klein, 2002;
Walsh-Childers et al., 2002).
The potential influences of exposure to women’s
magazines are nuanced, however. Although in the cur-
rent study reading women’s magazines was associated
with reported intentions to refuse sexual activity that
is unwanted, it was not related to intentions to ask for
consent to sexual activity. Kim and Ward (2004) found
that some women’s magazines feature sexually assertive
women, but our results indicate that readers may not be
internalizing this message—at least as it relates to seek-
ing sexual consent. Our results may suggest that readers
of men’s and women’s magazines have internalized the
traditional heterosexual script that holds women respon-
sible for allowing sexual activity to occur (a role focused
on saying yes or saying no) and expects men to actively
seek sexual activity (e.g., Humphreys & Herold, 2007;
Tolman et al., 2007).
The fact that magazine readership is significantly
associated with sexual consent negotiation intentions is
an important addition to the sexual health literature.
These findings are particularly critical when considering
the absence of sexual health content in magazines.
Although magazines contain a great amount of sexual
content, content analyses have indicated that their cover-
age of sexual health issues is infrequent and inaccurate
(Hust et al., 2008). Instead, sex is described as fun, cas-
ual, and risk free (Kim & Ward, 2004). This represents
a missed opportunity for health communication practi-
tioners to educate the public on sexual health issues,
specifically healthy sexual consent negotiation.
The findings reported in this article are critical in the
context of developmental research. The sample of this
study was first-year college students who reported read-
ing magazines infrequently, yet their younger peers likely
read magazines more regularly. Given that teens rely
heavily on the media’s portrayal of issues related to sex
as a source of information for these issues, concerns
about the extent, the nature, and the effect of sexually
oriented content on behaviors are well placed. Future stu-
dies should explore whether adolescents are influenced by
magazine exposure in the same way as their older peers.
Despite its contribution to the literature, this study
has some limitations. For example, although the sample
was ethnically diverse, it could have been more diverse.
Further research will benefit from an oversampling pro-
cedure to understand the effect of racial and other socio-
cultural backgrounds on sexual consent. Further, this
study did not measure or control for current relationship
status or past sexual experience. It is possible that inten-
tions related to sexual consent negotiation behaviors
could be explained, in part, by these variables. Future
research should examine the influence of current relation-
ship status and sexual experience on sexual consent
negotiation. It should also be noted that the majority
of participants in our study agreed they intended to seek
consent, adhere to sexual consent decisions, and refuse
unwanted sexual activity. Thus, the associations discov-
ered in the study may not be generalizable to populations
that have more variability in consent negotiation inten-
tions. Additional research is needed in this area.
In addition, the findings suggest magazine exposure is
associated with sexual consent negotiation, but the
measurement of magazine exposure focused on magazine
genres. This type of measurement did not allow parti-
cipants to indicate which specific magazine titles they
were exposed to most frequently. Given the variability
287
 HUST ET AL.
within each magazine genre, it is possible that exposure
to some magazines could have a greater influence on sex-
ual consent negotiation than others. Future research
would benefit from a more detailed examination of
exposure to specific magazine titles. It is also important
to conduct this type of research using other types of
media and additional magazine genres.
Last, the reported findings cannot provide a rationale
for causal claims, as is the case of observational studies.
The association between magazine exposure and sexual
consent negotiations could be because the readers of
the magazines internalized the messages after reading
the magazines or it could be that the readers choose to
read specific magazine genres because the content reflects
their internal beliefs. There is also the possibility of
reciprocal influences. Future research could use experi-
mental studies or longitudinal studies to investigate caus-
ation and could utilize nonrecursive models to explore
reciprocal relationships. In spite of these limitations, this
study established that magazine readership was associa-
ted with intentions related to the negotiation of sexual
consent.
Despite its limitations, this study expands existing
research (Ward et al., 2011) that called for investigations
into the media’s association with specific sexual func-
tions. Although not all hypotheses were supported, the
reported findings can guide future research on the med-
ia’s association with sexual consent negotiation. Overall,
the findings reported here further reinforce the critical
need for responsible and realistic portrayals of sex in
entertainment media, specifically magazines.
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