ISSN 2277-0844, Volume 3, Issue 7, pp 181-188, September, 2014. Online Journal of Social Sciences Research ©2014 Online Research Journals Full Length Research Article Available Online at http://www.onlineresearchjournals.org/JSS Influence of Sex and Gender-Role on Self- Efficacy in Sexual Negotiation *Sulaiman Olanrewaju Adebayo 1 and Tosin Tunrayo Olonisakin 2 1 Department of Psychology, Ekiti State University, Ado-Ekiti, Nigeria. 2 Department of Psychology, University of Lagos, Nigeria. Received 5 June, 2014 Accepted 4 September, 2014 Within the literature on sexuality, men and women have been portrayed to be different in how they behave in sexual situations. It has been argued that these differences can be linked to how men and women are socialised and the gender-role they conform to. Societal expectations of men and women specify how sexual relations between the two sexes should happen which in turn affects their ability to communicate exactly what they want in sexual situations. This study examined how an individual’s sex and gender-role can contribute to explaining men and women’s self-efficacy in negotiating sex with their partners. A total of 202 (male= 68, females= 134) participants whose ages range between 15 and 56, randomly selected from a federal university in Nigeria were used in this study. Data was collected using questionnaires. The objective of this study was to determine if sex and gender-role would independently and jointly influence self-efficacy in sexual negotiation of men and women. One-way analysis of variance was used in analysing the data. Findings of this study showed a significant independent influence of sex on self-efficacy in sexual negotiation, men had higher self-efficacy in sexual negotiation than women. No other influence was significant. The implication of this finding was discussed with reference to relevant literatures. Recommendations for future research were made. Key words: Sex, gender-role, self-efficacy in sexual negotiation, condom, HIV/AIDS. INTRODUCTION Sexuality is a central aspect of human life throughout the life span and it encompasses sex, gender identities and roles, sexual orientation, eroticism, intimacy and reproduction [1]. These components make sexuality an integral part of human health. Sex is the biologically determined characteristics of males and females, the physical and biological difference between male and female while gender means those societally or culturally defined characteristics and functions allocated to male and females. The term gender is a socially constructed one, brought about by the differences that societies ascribe to the sexes. It is culturally determined and results from the beliefs and tradition of a given society or community [2]. Gender-roles are powerful and are reflected in virtually every social institution like in the family structures, household responsibilities, marriage *Corresponding Author‟s E-mail: lanryadd(at)yahoo.com, sulaiman.adebayo(at)eksu.edu.ng; Tel.: +23-480-3386-5790. and labour markets [3]. Men are socialised to be dominating, assertive and aggressive while women are socialised to be submissive, nurturing and agreeable. Individual lives are strongly shaped by gender-role expectations about right and wrong behaviours appropriate to one‟s sex and the need to fit into those cultural or societal expectations. Gender-role permeates every human endeavour and leads to gender stereotype [2], it specifies appropriate career behaviour, thoughts, emotions, dressing and other characteristic appropriate for a particular sex and this sometimes lead to discrimination and inequity between the sexes. Although there are socio-cultural differences among Nigerians depending on their region or ethnic grouping, there are still commonly held beliefs and attitudes which cuts across geographic or ethnic affiliations. Among these beliefs is the belief that men and women should exhibit different sexual behaviours. This belief lends credence to the sexual script theory. The sexual script theory provides a useful framework for explaining the