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International Journal of Public Opinion Research 2008 20(1):52-73; doi:10.1093/ijpor/edn005
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© The Author 2008. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of The World Association for Public Opinion Research. All rights reserved.

Pluralistic Ignorance About Sex: The Direct and the Indirect Effects of Media Consumption on College Students' Misperception of Sex-Related Peer Norms

Stella C. Chia and Waipeng Lee

Address correspondence to Stella C. Chia, Assistant Professor, Wee Kim Wee School of Communication and Information, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore 637718, tcychia{at}ntu.edu.sg

The term pluralistic ignorance refers to erroneous beliefs held by a group of individuals about the attitudes or behavior of others. In this study, we examined the degree to which college students in Singapore misconceive their peers’ sexual attitudes and behavior. The data for this study came from a web-based survey involving a random sample of 534 college students in Singapore. The results indicate widespread evidence of pluralistic ignorance; that is, students believed that their peers were significantly more sexually active than was actually the case. The data also suggest that the students formed such erroneous impressions of peers on the basis, in part, of the students’ media consumption and of the students’ own sexual attitudes.

The study was supported by RCC grant from Nanyang Technological University. The authors would like to thank Koh Yeow Siah, Goh Chiang Chey, Jap Hendry, and Ong Li Ping, Magdalene for their assistance with this project.

Received for publication August 22, 2006. Revision received June 1, 2007.
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