East Tennessee State University Digital Commons @ East Tennessee State University Electronic Theses and Dissertations Student Works 8-2008 Self-Esteem in Relation to Casual Sex Behavior, Attitudes, and Affect. Kathryn Bieda East Tennessee State University Follow this and additional works at: https://dc.etsu.edu/etd Part of the Experimental Analysis of Behavior Commons, and the Gender and Sexuality Commons Recommended Citation Bieda, Kathryn, "Self-Esteem in Relation to Casual Sex Behavior, Attitudes, and Affect." (2008). Electronic Theses and Dissertations. Paper 1949. https://dc.etsu.edu/etd/1949 This Thesis - Open Access is brought to you for free and open access by the Student Works at Digital Commons @ East Tennessee State University. It has been accepted for inclusion in Electronic Theses and Dissertations by an authorized administrator of Digital Commons @ East Tennessee State University. For more information, please contact [email protected]. Self-Esteem in Relation to Casual Sex Behavior, Attitudes, and Affect _____________________ A thesis presented to the faculty of the Department of Psychology East Tennessee State University In partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree Masters of Arts in Psychology _____________________ by Kathryn Bieda August 2008 _____________________ Ginette Blackhart, Chair Peggy Cantrell Stacey Williams Keywords: Casual Sex, Sociosexuality, Affect, Attitudes ABSTRACT Self-Esteem in Relation to Casual Sex Behavior, Attitudes, and Affect by Kathryn Bieda Casual sex is common on college campuses and is potentially relevant to a person's self-esteem. Unfortunately, data are mixed regarding how self-esteem is influenced by casual sex. This thesis is an attempt to understand how casual sex influences women’s self-esteem through a series of questionnaires. Three hypotheses were of interest. The first predicted that sociosexuality and desire would explain casual sex engagement. Second, that casual sex behaviors and attitudes would predict self-esteem. Third, looking only at those who engaged in casual sex; casual sex attitudes and affect would predict self-esteem. Using hierarchical regression, results indicated that there was a curvilinear effect for sociosexuality on number of casual sex partners. Results for the second hypothesis showed an interaction between behavior and attitudes to predict self- esteem. Finally, for hypothesis three, results showed a moderation effect for attitudes on negative affect regarding overall casual sex experience and self-esteem. 2 DEDICATION This manuscript is dedicated to my family, especially my parents. They have always been supportive and encouraging; it was truly invaluable. Also, thank you to everyone who helped and supported me along the process. 3 CONTENTS Page ABSTRACT .................................................................................................................... 2 DEDICATION ...................................................................................................................... 3 LIST OF TABLES ........................................................................................................... 6 LIST OF FIGURES .......................................................................................................... 7 Chapter 1. INTRODUCTION..................................................................................................... 8 Casual Sex............................................................................................................. 8 Sociosexuality ....................................................................................................... 10 Sexual Desire............................................................................................................. 13 Attitudes’ Relationship With Self-Esteem and Engagement in Casual Sex .............. 14 Self-Esteem................................................................................................................ 16 Affect......................................................................................................................... 20 The Current Study..................................................................................................... 22 2. METHOD.................................................................................................................. 25 Measures.................................................................................................................... 25 Demographics ................................................................................................. 25 Sexual History..................................................................................................... 25 Sociosexuality...................................................................................................... 25 Attitudes............................................................................................................... 26 Sexual Desire....................................................................................................... 26 Self-Esteem.......................................................................................................... 27 Affect................................................................................................................... 27 Procedure................................................................................................................... 27 4 Sample .................................................................................................................. 28 Statistical Analyses.................................................................................................... 31 3. RESULTS................................................................................................................. 35 Sociosexuality and Sexual Desire ......................................................................... 35 Casual Sex Attitudes and Behavior Predicting Self-Esteem..................................... 38 Attitudes and Affect Predicting Self-Esteem After Engagement in Casual Sex....... 40 4. DISCUSSION .......................................................................................................... 45 Hypothesis 1 ......................................................................................................... 45 Hypothesis 2.......................................................................................................... 48 Hypothesis 3.......................................................................................................... 50 Limitations and Future Directions.......................................................................... 54 Conclusion ............................................................................................................ 57 REFERENCES ................................................................................................................. 59 APPENDICES .................................................................................................................. 65 Appendix A: Sexual History ................................................................................. 65 Appendix B: SOI................................................................................................... 68 Appendix C: BSAS ............................................................................................... 69 Appendix D: HISD................................................................................................ 70 Appendix E: RSES ................................................................................................ 71 VITA ............................................................................................................................... 72 5 LIST OF TABLES Table Page 1. Summary of Demographic Data Including Means, Standard Deviations, and N’s ...... 29 2. Means, Standard Deviations, and Correlations for SOI, HISD, and Casual Sex Partners ................................................................................................................. 35 3. Hierarchical Regression Analysis Summary for SOI, HISD, and Relationship Status Predicting Casual Sex Behavior............................................................................. 37 4. Means, Standard Deviations, and Correlations for BSAS, Number of Casual Sex Partners, and RSES................................................................................................ 38 5. Hierarchical Regression Analysis Summary for BSAS and Casual Sex Partners Predicting RSES...... .............................................................................................. 39 6. Means, Standard Deviations, and Correlations for BSAS, First Time Positive PANAS, First Time Negative PANAS, and RSES Among Participants Who Had Casual Sex............................................................................................................. 40 7. Means, Standard Deviations, and Correlations for BSAS, Overall Positive PANAS, First Time Negative PANAS, and RSES Among Participants Who Had Casual Sex 41 8. Hierarchical Regression Analysis Summary for BSAS, First Time Positive PANAS, and First Time Negative PANAS Predicting RSES................................................ 42 9. Hierarchical Regression Analysis Summary for BSAS, Overall Positive PANAS, and Overall Negative PANAS Predicting RSES..................................................... 43 6 LIST OF FIGURES Figure Page 1. Curvilinear Regression