Human Sexuality
The article under review is entitled “factors influencing young women’s sexual and reproductive health”, by Carmel Siebold in the Contemporary Nurse Journal volume 37, issue 2, of the year 2011. The article aims at adding knowledge to the experts and professionals in the field of medicine in order to increase their accuracy in coming up with programs for the youth women and the adolescents in general. The article based its hypothesis on the point that media influenced reproductive and sexual health of young women and adolescents. The media offers sexually arousing messages to the youth, women and adolescents through the corrupted advertisements, music, and clothing portrayed in programs aired over the media.
The research succeeded by use of questionnaires, which included differently structured questions, in order to gather both quantitative and qualitative data. Open-ended questionnaires’ were also used over a sample of between 18 and 24 years old female first year students who were born in Australia. First, the students received the questionnaires in the initial stages of the semester, which was during the first two weeks. Only those students who were eighteen to twenty-four years old participated in the exercise. After answering the questions, the students dropped their copies of the questionnaire in a suggestions’ box that was strategically placed in their lecture halls. This true experiment style would provide realistic results.
After the survey results were analyzed using Word 7 and the Likert's scale among others, the study found that majority of the respondents, (31) aged 18-20 yrs, with the other part aging 21-24 as the minority. A majority of 52% was single while 48% remained single. 70% of them were living with their parents, 26% shared houses, and a low of 2% were living with their partners. The research showed that majority of the young women very well understood their sexuality. However, a small minority showed that they did not understand about the subject. The research concluded that young women were aware of their sexuality and there needed to be a way to prevent them from engaging in sexually demeaning behaviors. Additionally, it was concluded that many young adolescents are bound by their cultures that sexualize them at a very young age. However, it was not easy for many girls to seek information that would provide unbiased sexual education to all genders.
A popular media style presentation.
The popular media chosen is the psychology today, the article on why women need fat. This article seeks to establish the kind of women that men are interested in as far as their body weight and general composure is concerned (Lassek, 2012, p. 2). He concludes that men are not, and will never be attracted to skinny women, but to fat women. He adds that men pay a great interest on the BMI of a woman. In reference to playmates, the author says that they maintain an average BMI with a good and well matching body posture. The playmates have a certain hips waist and bust curves, which make them, look far much better, compared to the young university women students. Men find such body curves and figures more pleasing and attractive.
Lassek discusses that models are much different from playboys. The great difference between the two is the bust, waist and hips’ size as well as the height. The models have an average BMI of 17.1 and almost over 50% of the models have their BMI below 17.1. The models are usually taller compared to the playboys. However, it remains in the minds of many women that men seek to get a skinny woman. With research done on the same topic, many women ignore the desire of men to have an averagely fat woman. Many women are misled by information and advice they get from other uninformed sources as Lassek argues. He bases his argument on models featured in the playboy and vogue with the fact that men and women do not come into consensus on which woman’s body shape is the best. However, this is presented as his findings after observing men and women in different occasions, and over a long time.
Comparing the two
Both articles bear some similarities in that both aim at educating and giving insight to what is the reality. They are both on basis of a hypothesis with the popular media’s being why men find supper skinny models very attractive. They both seek to achieve an aim and probably educate. However, both bear great differences. The peer reviewed scholarly article bases its argument on well-tested and reviewed research while the popular media’s is on author’s opinion. This then means that the peer-reviewed article is more realistic and builds its conclusions and recommendations on well-filtered scientific research methods.
The peer reviewed scholarly article would offer well-proved value of information for any reader or consumer. This is due to its basis of conclusions and recommendations. Before publishing such articles, various rigorous reviews are done to make sure the work is viable for the readers. It is an originally carried out survey by professional, people with expertise in the field, and then presented to other professionals in the same field. As for the psychology today’s article, the author is not an expert in the field he is talking about. He seems to be giving news to the audience other than educating them. He gives no reference to support his argument or even show its viability. The authors also portray absoluteness without support, which tend to be more misleading than giving direction. It does not give a recommendation but leaves the argument open for one to choose a direction or the position to take. In addition, it does not provide the why of the subject topic, which is very important on the side of the audience or consumers. It has no background to support the reader.
This argument does not mean that either of the articles is useless and unimportant. All contain important information, which can be very useful in different scenarios. They all convey important and useful information. The peer-reviewed scholarly article is important since it will give the adolescents insight to their behaviors and educate them about what to do to avoid young age pregnancies and unprotected sex with support information gathered from adolescents (Moore et al. 1995, p. 160). This is actually the best way of communicating such information. On the other hand, the popular media bears very important information to the target audience. Much of the information provided is based on the author’s experience or rather observation, which may help others. It might not have any scientific prove, but some information does not need such authentication. For instance, to whether men prefer skinny women or not require observation and interaction, which is enough to provide insight. It gives the consumer first hand information, which does not need a scientific proof. Popular media is the best to tackle issues as they arise.
Knowledge is acquired through learning which this written information provides. Many peers have lost it in life simply because of ignorance-the reason why there are many cases of pregnancies and unprotected sex. By reading such papers, one would also be able to understand the reason behind some of the many questions young people bear (Moore et al. 1995, p. 169). Sex is no longer a private issue but a public issue. The media advertises it in the public and thus public education on it will be more effective.
Many professors ask students to incorporate peer reviewed material and popular media material in order to get a variety of information. Peer reviewed scholarly article will provide them scientifically proved information while popular media will offer what people are thinking, or what people know without specifically carrying out research. Both provide written information. This written information is very important to peers. Knowledge is acquired through learning which this written information provides for (Huston et al, 1998, p. 253). Many peers have lost it in life simply because of ignorance and that is why there are many cases of pregnancies and unprotected sex. Unfortunately, many seek to find solutions from peers whereas well-guided solutions are available in documentations. It is therefore very important for the adolescents to write it down for this will help them remember as opposed to just seeing. Sex is no longer a private issue but a public issue. The media advertises it in the public and thus public education on it will be more effective. Every adolescent should have information about it and therefore it is good to provide such information from a healthy source.
Conclusion
The two forms of information provide different perspectives to acquiring information and building up of conclusions. The peer-reviewed article seems to be more authentic compared to the popular media since it provides proved and scientifically tested information. They are more valid. Such articles are reviewed before and after the research before their release to the target audience. The popular media on the other hand bears more of observations as well as person’s opinions to educate. It may be an invalid argument, which totally lack support. The peer-reviewed articles however face a big challenge with some peer-reviewed articles containing falsified data by the authors. There needs to be better ways to authenticate the validity of such data. However, the peers reviewed journal show great potential in educating on basis of reality.
Reference list
Diebold, C. (2011). “Factors influencing young women’s sexual and reproductive health”.
Contemporary Nurse: A Journal for the Australian Nursing Profession 37(2), 124–136.
Retrieved from: http://ezproxy.apus.edu/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=rzh&AN=2011316499&site=ehost-live.
Huston, A.C., Wartella E., & Donnerstein E, (1998). Measuring the effects of sexual content in
the media: a report to the Kaiser Family Foundation. Menlo Park (CA): Kaiser Family
Foundation. Retrieved from: http://www.kff.org/insurance/loader.cfm?url=/commonspot/security/getfile.cfm&pageid=14624.
Lassek, W. (2012). Psychology Today: Do Men Find Very Skinny Women Attractive? Retrieved
from http://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/why-women-need-fat/201202/do-men-find-very-skinny-women-attractive
Moore, K.A., Miller, B.E., Glei D, et al. (1995). Adolescent sex contraception and childbearing:
a review of recent research. Washington (DC): Child Trends. Available from http://eric.ed.gov/ERICWebPortal/search/detailmini.
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