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Dissertation
EXPLORING YOUNG ADULTS’ PERCEPTIONS OF ALCOHOL IMAGES ON SOCIAL MEDIA: WISHFUL IDENTIFICATION, DESIRABILITY, AND SEX-RELATED ALCOHOL EXPECTANCIES
Washington State University
Doctor of Philosophy (PhD), Washington State University
07/2024
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.7273/000007058
Abstract
Alcohol-facilitated sexual activities or sexual violence pose various risks to underage individuals, who are often in the unique transitional period navigating new living environments such as college campuses. Within this context, women are especially concerned, given that media portrayals often reinforce the sexual objectification and dehumanization of women. This study investigated the influence of alcohol imagery on young adults' sex-related alcohol expectancies, focusing on the viewers' perceptions of the alcohol images featuring women, women's wishful identification with the models, and men's desirability toward the models. A posttest-only 2×2 (sexualization [highly sexualized/barely sexualized]; age [perceived as under 21/over 21] experiment was conducted online with 306 participants aged between 18 and 20. Results indicated that mere exposure was not significantly associated with sex-related alcohol expectancies, except for men's expectancies that alcohol would lower inhibition. For women, perceptions of the models and the images, along with their wishful identification with the models, were associated with expectancies linking alcohol with sexual activity. Men's expectancies, however, were primarily associated with their desirability toward the models, with one exception. This study extends existing research by delving beyond mere exposure to explore the viewers' perceptions of alcohol imagery and how they are associated with sex-related alcohol expectancies.
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Details
- Title
- EXPLORING YOUNG ADULTS’ PERCEPTIONS OF ALCOHOL IMAGES ON SOCIAL MEDIA
- Creators
- Soojung Kang
- Contributors
- Stacey J. T. Hust (Chair)Jessica Fitts Willoughby (Committee Member)Yoon Joo Lee (Committee Member)
- Awarding Institution
- Washington State University
- Academic Unit
- Edward R. Murrow College of Communication
- Theses and Dissertations
- Doctor of Philosophy (PhD), Washington State University
- Publisher
- Washington State University
- Number of pages
- 71
- Identifiers
- 99901152439301842
- Language
- English
- Resource Type
- Dissertation