Our Research

Unwanted sex is widely experienced by young women in the United States and can negatively impact young adults’ mental health as well as their sexual and reproductive health.  Previous research has identified the factors associated with young women agreeing to have unwanted sex, such as previous coercive sexual experiences, low self-esteem, peer pressure, and gender attitudes about sex roles. In addition, research has demonstrated that black women and women with lower socioeconomic status are more likely to experience unwanted sex than white and more socioeconomically advantaged women. The higher likelihood of disadvantaged women experiencing unwanted sex is potentially due to their worse access to health care and sexual education as well as relationship norms.  However, much less is known about young women’s willingness to refuse unwanted sex.

This study is the first of its kind to examine this willingness to refuse sex and explore how it evolves during the transition to adulthood.  This brief by the Population Research Center provides a summary report on this new study by SOGI graduate student Allen Mallory and Abigail Weitzman, UT Austin assistant professor of sociology and faculty research associate at the PRC.