Impacts of media on sexual behaviour and relationships among youth in foster care

Youth in foster care (YFC) are at high risk of negative reproductive and other health outcomes and may be especially vulnerable to negative impacts of media due to early adversity and a lack of stable caregiver relationships. The aim of this project was to explore how access and exposure to media im...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Child & family social work 2018-02, Vol.23 (1), p.88-96
Main Authors: Albertson, Katie M., Moreno, Megan A., Garrison, Michelle M., Evans, Yolanda N., Ahrens, Kym R.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
adolescence
Adversity
Caregivers
Clinical outcomes
difficult behaviour
Focus Groups
Foster care
Foster carers
fostering
Health problems
Health services
Health status
High risk
Mass media effects
Pornography
prevention (adolescent problems and positive youth development)
Reproduction
Resilience
Semi Structured Interviews
Sexual behavior
sexuality
Vulnerability
Youth
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Summary:Youth in foster care (YFC) are at high risk of negative reproductive and other health outcomes and may be especially vulnerable to negative impacts of media due to early adversity and a lack of stable caregiver relationships. The aim of this project was to explore how access and exposure to media impacts YFC in order to inform future research in this realm and promote resilience in this understudied population. We conducted semistructured interviews with YFC ages 15–21 (n = 22) and focus groups with foster caregivers (n = 86). We used thematic analysis to analyse data for themes related to media. Youth and caregivers described four main themes: (a) impacts of media on youth norms and attitudes, (b) impacts of media on youth behaviour, (c) impacts of youth exposure to pornography, and (d) caregiver monitoring and mediation of media. Data from this study indicate that media has unique, important effects on YFC norms and behaviours, including sexual behaviours. Foster caregivers encounter multiple barriers to monitoring and mediating media use for YFC. Further research is needed to explore differential effects of media on YFC versus non‐YFC in order to develop effective interventions and mitigate potential negative effects of media.
ISSN:1356-7500
1365-2206
DOI:10.1111/cfs.12387