The study, conducted in Belgium and published in Springer's journal Sex Roles, aimed to find out if such a bombardment of sexualised images actually skews the way that children view sex later in life and if it gives them unrealistic ideas of how sexually active their peers are.

515 Belgian teenagers were surveyed and the results were shocking perhaps, but not surprising. For years, mothers everywhere have fretted that music videos with women shaking their ample behinds are bad for us and now there is research to prove that they may be right.

One of the key things that the study found is that there is a huge difference in the effects seen between boys and girls. Teenage boys that watch sexual music videos often were found to be more sexually active, but also perceived their peers to be more so. The same correlation was not viewed in girls who seemed less likely to watch typically sexualised videos.

The study suggested that this may be because of the pattern that is typically followed in such videos which often shows men in more dominant roles than the women. PhD student Eline Frison who conducted the study reasoned that this was due to a “type of defence reaction on the part of girls who believe that many male peers are sexually active.”

She continued: “Regarding the influence of music television exposure on sexual behaviour, our findings suggest that increased sexual activities may be triggered by media use among boys, but not among girls.”

“As the portrayal of women as objects of lust reflects patriarchal values, media images that support this type of male dominance may provoke resistance in female viewers. 

“This is especially valid among those who view such activity as a threat because of the high sexual activity rates of male peers.”
The findings from the study are worrying in their disparity between the sexes. The differences shown mean that as children grow, conflict and dysfunction will grow with them and that means that gender inequality, and even violence toward women may become rife.