Misogyny – set to music – may alter teen behavior

But more sophisticated studies, like the one published by RAND, are starting to tease out which aspects of media affect kids, and in what ways.

"This uses a more precise methodology than previous studies have, particularly around the issue of content," says Michael Rich, director of the Center on Media and Child Health at Harvard University. "We as a society have lulled ourselves into thinking that if it's entertainment it doesn't affect us. There's this artificial dichotomy we've drawn between education and entertainment – education is at school, and then kids turn their brains off when they go home and listen to misogynistic lyrics."

Still, Dr. Rich and others agree that censorship – whether at home or on a social level – is a losing game. Rather than ban music, they say, parents should be aware of what their kids are listening to and willing to have conversations that put it in context.

"You can listen with them, and then say 'What do you think of that line?' " says James Steyer, the founder of Common Sense Media, which conducts media ratings and reviews. "It may be a little embarrassing, but it's a great way to have a conversation with kids about smart sexuality."

Mr. Steyer is quick to say that media shouldn't be punished – it's very possible, he says, to appreciate the beat and rhythm of a song and reject the lyrics' message. But he thinks it's naive to assume music has no effect. "More and more, it's going to be important to look at media through the lens of public health," he says.

Still, such studies are notoriously difficult to conduct and are often inconclusive – merely finding an association, for instance, doesn't necessarily mean that one activity leads to another. Even Martino acknowledges there are still variables his team might not have accounted for. While it's impossible to prove that lyrics were responsible for his study's observations, Martino says he hopes that by tracking the adolescents over time – as well as by accounting for other factors such as an expressed desire to have sex at an earlier age – the study has demonstrated a strong causal connection.

Determining which lyrics were degrading and which were merely sexual constituted another challenge. Two separate researchers made that subjective decision and generally agreed. They looked for lyrics that either objectified women, viewed men as insatiable studs, or treated sex as an inconsequential game.

"These kids are teenagers, and ... it would be wrong to say we shouldn't expose these kids to sex," says Martino. "But it's another thing to expose these kids very consistently to the message that women are sexual objects."

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