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ERIC Number: EJ1074682
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2015
Pages: 11
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: EISSN-2167-8715
EISSN: N/A
Investigating How MTV's "16 & Pregnant" May Be Used as Media Literacy Education with High-Risk Adolescents
Scull, Tracy Marie; Ortiz, Rebecca; Shafer, Autumn; Brown, Jane; Kupersmidt, Janis B.; Suellentrop, Katherine
Journal of Media Literacy Education, v7 n2 p1-11 2015
Reality television shows featuring teen pregnancy may be used as media literacy education tools to positively affect youth sexual health outcomes. Concerns, however, exist that such programming may glamorize teen pregnancy. The present study examined how viewing and discussing episodes of MTV's "16 and Pregnant", a reality television series about teen pregnancy, may impact adolescents at high risk for teen pregnancy (N =162; M=13.5 years). Adolescents indicated that they enjoyed viewing and discussing the episodes and saw the program as realistic but did not perceive the lives of the characters as desirable. Many also reported that they talked with someone afterward about what they had seen. Findings provide preliminary evidence that reality television shows focused on the potential outcomes of sexual behavior may be a useful way to engage adolescents in conversations about sexual health.
National Association for Media Literacy Education. 10 Laurel Hill Drive, Cherry Hill, NJ 08003. Tel: 888-775-2652; e-mail: editor@jmle.org; Web site: http://digitalcommons.uri.edu/jmle/
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: N/A
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A