Strategies of Influence in Sex and Dating

Abstract

This study examined the use of premarital sexual influence strategies and how these strategies were related to the gender and the sexual motivations of single, dating individuals. Participants (n = 366) responded to a 48-item survey that asked about how much they had used specific sexual influence techniques on their most recent date. Principal-components analysis revealed that four general influence strategies, Antisocial Acts, Emotional and Physical Closeness, Logic and Reason and Pressure and Manipulation were used in this interaction. Difference tests revealed multivariate and univariate effects for both gender and motivational state. Further, regression analysis indicated that only the strategies of Emotional and Physical Closeness and Logic and Reason were related to actual sexual behavior. The findings suggest that future investigations may wish to examine the impact of using different strategies on subsequent relationship development.