Sexual Liberalism–Conservatism: The Effect of Human Values, Gender, and Previous Sexual Experience

Despite theoretical associations, there is a lack of empirical studies on the axiological basis of sexual liberalism–conservatism.
Two studies demonstrated important associations between these constructs for young adults. In Study 1, participants were 353
undergraduate students with a mean age of 20.13 (SD = 1.84), who completed the Sexual Liberalism–Conservatism Scale and the Basic Values Survey. In Study 2, participants were
269 undergraduate students, with a mean age of 20.3 (SD = 1.82), who completed a social desirability scale in addition to Study 1 instruments. Results showed how values can predict
sexual liberalism–conservatism after controlling for social desirability. Attitudes towards one’s own sexual behavior were
more conservative whereas attitudes towards other’s sexual behavior were more liberal. Gender was not a significant predictor
of sexual attitudes whereas previous sexual experience showed a significant association to this construct. In general, results
corroborated previous findings, showing that participants with a tendency to present socially desirable answers also tended
to present themselves as sexually conservative.