Use of Sexual Material Online and At-Risk Sexual Behavior Regarding HIV/AIDS among College Students.

Use of sexual material online (USMO) by young people has been connected with at-risk sexual behavior for HIV/AIDS. Media Richness and Social Cognitive theories propose that rich media offer more information with interactive and audible visual content, which could have a significant impact on people's thinking and behavior. The objective was to determine whether USMO presented by rich media has an influence on at-risk sexual behavior for HIV/AIDS. Two hundred young people participated in the study, and it was found that USMO from rich media is connected to at risk sexual behavior for HIV/AIDS (p<.01). Young people who use rich media for masturbation (F[2,189]=10.169, p<.001), arousal (F[2,189]=4.686, p<.05), stimulation (F[2,189]=8.382, p<.001), and seeking adventures (F[2,189]=6.406, p<.01) were more likely to show at risk sexual behavior for HIV/AIDS. The study also found that young people may experience pleasure from USMO in rich media and feel motivated to model what they observe.