When conducting social research sociologists know that observing a social phenomenon means studying a group of individuals’ personal attitudes and beliefs which are reflected through social behavior. With this understanding, it is possible to say that people in any given society are ultimately responsible for building social norms (Festinger, 1954). A very personal yet social aspect in society is sexuality. There is ample amount of research done on the topic, but when looking at it through a social lens, sexual behaviors and attitudes can become difficult to measure. Regardless of difficulty, however, many sociologists have studied the trends that fall into the category of sexuality as a social phenomenon (Blumstein, 1978). When studying sex
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In America the topic of being sexually active became a more sensitive subject after the introduction of feminism (Fulle, Chang, Knox, 2016). In the article The Sexual Double Standard and Adolescent Peer Derek A. Kreager and Jeremy Staff (2009) suggest that roots of a sexual double standard depends on an individual person’s attitudes and beliefs about what they call “gender appropriate behavior”. There are two main biases that fall into the topic of a sexual double standard: one is negative, the other is positive. According to the sexual double standard, boys and men are rewarded and praised for heterosexual sexual encounters, whereas girls and women are derogated and stigmatized for the same exact behaviors (Bordini & Sperb, …show more content…
Females are not to express sexual freedom because it is seen as "trashy," "slutty," and "nasty" but on the other hand, males who partake in the same negative behavior are praised, considered a "real man", and are encouraged to continue their promiscuity. If a woman has lots of sex, she’s a “dirty whore” but if a man has lots of sex, he’s a “stud” and a “player” (Ashwell, 2016). A feminist perspective challenges the motives behind these existing attitudes and seeks to find answers in the gender gap (O’Neill, 2015). It is only due to the dismissal of the stigma does the double standard get overlooked in every day social settings (Bordini & Sperb, 2012). Are men intimidated by women? Does the patriarchal society sexualize females? Why are men repulsed if women do not adhere to the traditional standards of sex? What makes any of those questions important at
In America the topic of being sexually active became a more sensitive subject after the introduction of feminism (Fulle, Chang, Knox, 2016). In the article The Sexual Double Standard and Adolescent Peer Derek A. Kreager and Jeremy Staff (2009) suggest that roots of a sexual double standard depends on an individual person’s attitudes and beliefs about what they call “gender appropriate behavior”. There are two main biases that fall into the topic of a sexual double standard: one is negative, the other is positive. According to the sexual double standard, boys and men are rewarded and praised for heterosexual sexual encounters, whereas girls and women are derogated and stigmatized for the same exact behaviors (Bordini & Sperb, …show more content…
Females are not to express sexual freedom because it is seen as "trashy," "slutty," and "nasty" but on the other hand, males who partake in the same negative behavior are praised, considered a "real man", and are encouraged to continue their promiscuity. If a woman has lots of sex, she’s a “dirty whore” but if a man has lots of sex, he’s a “stud” and a “player” (Ashwell, 2016). A feminist perspective challenges the motives behind these existing attitudes and seeks to find answers in the gender gap (O’Neill, 2015). It is only due to the dismissal of the stigma does the double standard get overlooked in every day social settings (Bordini & Sperb, 2012). Are men intimidated by women? Does the patriarchal society sexualize females? Why are men repulsed if women do not adhere to the traditional standards of sex? What makes any of those questions important at