bims-chumac 2021-09-12 papers

Issue of 2021–09–12
three papers selected by
Thomas Krichel, Open Library Society

Pers Soc Psychol Bull. 2021 Sep 09. 1461672211040964

Social Media Use Predicts Greater Liking in In-Person Initial Interactions.

Jennifer L Heyman, Lauren Gazzard Kerr, Lauren J Human.

Does how people generally engage with their online social networks relate to offline initial social interactions? Using a large-scale study of first impressions (N = 806, Ndyad = 4,565), we examined how different indicators of social media use relate to the positivity of dyadic in-person first impressions, from the perspective of the participants and their interaction partners. Many forms of social media use (e.g., Instagram, Snapchat, passive) were associated with liking and being liked by others more, although some forms of use (e.g., Facebook, active) were not associated with liking others or being liked by others. Furthermore, most associations held controlling for extraversion and narcissism. Thus, while some social media use may be generally beneficial for offline social interactions, some may be unrelated, highlighting the idea that how, rather than how much, people use social media can play a role in their offline social interactions.

Keywords: extraversion; impressions; liking; narcissism; social media

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/01461672211040964

J Sex Res. 2021 Sep 08. 1-10

Pathways from College Students' Cognitive Scripts for Consensual Sex to Sexual Victimization: A Three-Wave Longitudinal Study.

Barbara Krahé, Anja Berger.

Sexual scripts serve as cognitive representations of typical elements of sexual interactions that guide sexual behavior. To the extent that cognitive scripts for consensual sex comprise elements associated with a risk of experiencing nonconsensual sex, they may be indirectly linked to sexual victimization via risky sexual behavior. A longitudinal study with 2,425 college students in Germany (58% female) examined pathways from sexual scripts for consensual sex, sexual behavior, and sexual victimization over three data waves separated by 12-month intervals. Sexual scripts and behavior were defined as risky to the extent that they include known vulnerability factors for sexual victimization (casual sex, alcohol consumption, ambiguous communication of sexual intentions). Path analyses confirmed that more risky sexual scripts prospectively predicted more risky sexual behavior, which predicted higher odds of sexual victimization. The findings held for men and women and participants with exclusively opposite-sex and both same- and opposite-sex contacts. Moreover, reciprocal influences between risky scripts and risky sexual behavior were found over time, confirming the proposed mutual reinforcement of scripts and behavior. The findings have implications for conceptualizing the role of scripts for consensual sex as vulnerability factors for sexual victimization among women and men and may inform intervention efforts.

Keywords: Germany; college students; sexual behavior; sexual scripts; sexual victimization

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/00224499.2021.1972922

Front Psychol. 2021 ;12 711199

Attachment Avoidance Moderates the Relationship Among Acceptance of Sugar Relationships, Motivation, and Self-Esteem.

Dóra Ipolyi, Edit Csányi, András Láng, Norbert Meskó.

A sugar relationship is a monetary-based liaison between a wealthier older and an attractive younger person, the latter receiving expensive gifts or financial compensation in exchange for her or his sexual companionship. Attachment, motivation, and self-esteem are all integrative parts of adult romantic and sexual relationships. There is relatively little empirical research on the psychological correlates of accepting attitudes toward sugar relationships. The research aimed to explore the relationship among the acceptance of sugar relationship, attachment (avoidance and anxiety), motivation (extrinsic and intrinsic), and self-esteem. A total of 2,409 Hungarian adults including 1,980 younger participants (1,804 women, 175 men, mean age = 21.17) and 429 older participants (290 men, 138 women, mean age = 48.86) completed an online test battery comprising four self-report measures. In the younger subsample, the only significant association obtained for the acceptance of sugar relationships was its positive correlation with extrinsic motivation. In the older subsample, the acceptance of sugar relationships was positively correlated with all tested variables except self-esteem. Subsequent analysis revealed that attachment avoidance but not anxiety moderated the associations between the variables. Among younger participants, the negative effect of self-esteem and intrinsic motivation on accepting sugar relationships decreased with increasing attachment avoidance. Among older participants, the positive effect of extrinsic motivation on accepting sugar relationships decreased with increasing attachment avoidance. The results are discussed with regard to relational and sexual goals associated with adult attachment orientations.

Keywords: acceptance of sugar relationships; adult attachment; motivation; self-esteem; transactional sex

DOI: https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2021.711199