Direct and Indirect Messages African American Women Receive From Their Familial Networks About Intimate Relationships and Sex: The Intersecting Influence of Race,Gender,and Class

Abstract

This qualitative study examined the sexual socialization experienced by emerging adult, African American women, ages 18 to 26 years, who received services at a sexually transmitted infection clinic. Data obtained from in-depth interviews revealed that women received information about sex and relationships from three primary sources: women of the previous generation, who emphasized relationship quality, contraception and the consequences of sex; partner qualities, and role responsibilities; same-generation women, whose messages addressed relationship quality and the consequences of sex and male family members, who emphasized men’s treatment of women and sexual issues. Women described both direct and indirect (observed) messages, as well as differences and similarities in messages. The analysis focused on the content of these messages, and the influence of race, class, gender, and age in the socialization experience.