Researchers from California State University at Fullerton and the University of Michigan conducted tests that produced interesting results. The data obtained showed that regular readers of women's magazines, taking scripts of behavior that are propagated on the pages of these publications, are becoming more liberated in sex.
The study was originally published in the journal Psychology of Women Quarterly. At the very beginning of their work, the authors pointed out the difference in behavioral scenarios offered to readers of women's magazines "for adults" and publications targeted at teenagers. The latter more often warn girls about the possible negative consequences of relationships with the opposite sex, talking about sexual attraction only in the context of mutual love. Magazines intended for a more sophisticated audience specialize in the image of an independent, assertive woman who seeks pleasure in sex for herself. The influence of publications intended for teenage readers was not taken into account in the study.
The results of a survey conducted among study participants who read articles from Cosmopolitan magazine showed that this publication has a certain influence on the preferences of its readers. Ladies who regularly flip through this magazine tend to think that premarital sex is more fun than risky. In addition, this group of participants in the experiment showed a desire to enjoy themselves, and not to please a partner. Women who rarely encounter such articles consider premarital intimate relationships risky and are quite ready to be content with a subordinate role in sex.
As the authors of the study cautiously noted, the regular Cosmopolitan readers quite willingly accept and try on the models of behavior that are demonstrated on the pages of this publication. The idea of the possibility and naturalness of intimate relationships for their own pleasure relieves them of a number of complexes.