Sex on TV linked to teen pregnancy

Exposure to some forms of entertainment is a corrupting influence on children, leading teens who watch sexy programs into early pregnancies and children who play violent video games to adopt aggressive behavior, researchers said on Monday.

The researchers recruited adolescents aged 12 to 17 and surveyed them three times between 2001 and 2004, asking about television viewing habits, sexual behavior and pregnancy.

In findings that covered 718 teenagers, there were 91 pregnancies. Those with the highest exposure to sex on television were twice as likely to be involved in a pregnancy than those with the least exposure.

"Adolescents receive a considerable amount of information about sex through television and that programming typically does not highlight the risks and responsibilities of sex," said Anita Chandra, the lead author and a behavioral scientist at RAND, the nonprofit research organization that funded the study.

"Our findings suggest that television may play a significant role in the high rates of teenage pregnancy in the United States," she said.

Researchers said the study demonstrated that programs with sexual content create the perception there is little risk of sex without contraception.

The rate of teenage pregnancies has increased for the first time in 15 years, measuring 41.9 births per 1,000 Americans aged 15 to 19 years in 2006, according to the Center for Prevention and Disease Control (CDC).

"The amount of sexual content on television has doubled in recent years, and there is little representation of safer sex practices in those portrayals," said Chandra.

The findings have implications for broadcasters, parents and health care providers, she added.

The US has one of the highest teen pregnancy rates among industrialized nations, with nearly one million adolescent females becoming pregnant each year, with the majority of these pregnancies unplanned, according to RAND.

研究人员于本周一称，如今一些具有色情和暴力性质的娱乐内容正对青少年造成“腐蚀性”的危害，受此类电视节目和电子游戏影响，青少年易发生意外怀孕和形成暴力倾向。

研究人员从2001年至2004年对718名年龄在12岁至17岁之间的青少年进行了三次调查，询问他们的收视习惯、性行为和是否有过怀孕史等问题。

在这些受访者中，有91人有怀孕史。调查结果显示，经常看色情电视节目的青少年怀孕的几率为那些很少看此类节目的人的两倍。

研究负责人安妮塔•香德拉是“兰德”非赢利性调查结构的行为科学家，该机构为此次研究提供资金支持。她说：“青少年从电视上得到了大量与性有关的信息，而这些电视节目很少提及性行为的风险和责任。”

她说：“我们的调查结果表明，电视可能是造成美国青少年怀孕率居高不下的一个很重要的因素。”

研究人员称，该研究表明，带有色情内容的电视节目会给青少年造成这样一种误导：在进行性行为时，不采取安全措施也无妨。

据美国疾病防控中心统计，美国的青少年怀孕率15年来首次增长。2006年的数据显示，在1000名15岁至19岁的青少年中，有41.9人怀孕生产。

香德拉说：“近年来，带有色情内容的电视节目数量翻了一番，而这些节目很少有关于安全性行为的。”

她说，这项研究对电视媒体、家长和卫生保健机构具有一定的警示作用。

据兰德调查机构称，美国是发达国家中青少年怀孕率最高的国家之一，全美每年有近100万少女怀孕，其中大多数是意外怀孕。