This chapter’s ‘Doing Sociological Research Box’ highlights the changing sexual norms in contemporary society as teens are somewhat more sexuality conservative. In my opinion, the theory that explains such changes is the Social Norms theory, which posits that people's behaviors get influenced by misperceptions of their peers' actions and thinking. Overestimation of problem behavior in peers will increase problem behaviors, while underestimation of problem behaviors will discourage people from getting involved in problematic behaviors. Besides, according to Social Norms Theory, correcting the misperceptions about the perceived norms is likely to lead to a reduction in problem behaviors or an increase in the expected or desired behaviors. Moreover, social norms interventions involve the presentation of correct information about various norms with the aim of correcting misperceptions of norms.
The research findings do not match up with my perceptions. That is because my perception is that sexuality among teens in the contemporary society is increasing. I think what accounts for the gap between perception and reality is that perception is based on the assumptions about the normal sexual behavior of teens as depicted by their lifestyles and their representation in social media, while reality is based on research findings. For instance, according to research, the sexuality conservativeness among teens in the contemporary society is as a result of the fear of AIDS, increased awareness about safe sex, as well as the growth of various conservative values. Additionally, perception assumes that teen sexuality is a normal component of adolescence that generates more problematic sexual behavior among teens, while the reality, according to research, is that the revolution in gender norms creates more responsible sexual behavior among teens.
