The prevalence of excessive violence in recent Rated-R and PG-13 movies in America has been conspicuous and the effect of being exposed to constant violent media is known to have serious negative effects on viewers. Sexual contents in American films are very restricted to viewers, for including only a couple of swear words in a movie could have it rated Rated R. However, the exposure to constant sexual contents in movies are known to have an effect on the viewers that could actually be worse than the effects of violent media. A research was conducted in University of Missouri where over 1,200 kids between the ages of 12 and 14 were asked the number of movies they have watched that contained sexual scenes. The scientists later followed up with the participants and they found out that teenagers and young adults who have answered that they have watched a large number of movies that contained sexual contents when they were young were more likely to become sexually active at a younger age and were more likely to engage in risky behavior such as not using condoms during sexual intercourse.
We all have watched many PG-13 movies and Rated-R movies that contain sexual contents. It is very scary to think that while we watch these movies, our brains become naturally affected by the sexual images and it ultimately affects our views and actions towards sexuality. The effects really differ from person to person but next time you watch a movie with sexual references, it won't be a bad idea to keep in mind that the sexual images we see could be subconsciously affecting our brains.
It is scary to think of how media affects our subconscious. And not only is it sexual images in movies, but also in video games and advertisements. It seems like a lot of it contains risky sexual practices, which like you said, can cause those behaviors in young adults. I wonder if the sexual acts were portrayed in a more safe, realistic manner if they would cause younger people to be more safe
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