Adolescent sexuality

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Main articles: Human sexuality and Adolescence

Adolescent sexuality refers to sexual feelings, behavior and development in adolescents and is a stage of human sexuality. Sexuality is a vital aspect of teens' lives.[1] The sexual behavior of adolescents is influenced by their culture's norms and mores, their sexual preference, and the issues of social control such as age of consent laws.

In humans, mature sexual desire usually begins to appear with the onset of puberty. Sexual expression can take the form of masturbation or sex with a partner. Sexual preferences among adolescents, like adults, can vary greatly. Sexual activity in general is associated with a number of risks, including sexually transmitted diseases (including HIV/AIDS), emotional distress, and pregnancy through failure or non-use of birth control. This is particularly true for adolescents as most are not emotionally mature[2] or financially self sufficient.

Contents

[edit] Teenage pregnancy

Main article: Teenage pregnancy

Adolescent girls become fertile following the menarche (first menstrual period), which occurs in the United States at an average age of 12.5., although it can vary widely between different girls. After menarche, sexual intercourse (especially without contraception) can lead to pregnancy. The pregnant teenager may then miscarry, have an abortion, or carry the child to full term.

Pregnant teenagers face many of the same obstetrics issues as women in their 20s and 30s. However, there are additional medical concerns for younger mothers, particularly those under 15 and those living in developing countries; for example, obstetric fistula is a particular issue for very young mothers in poorer regions. [3] For mothers between 15 and 19, age in itself is not a risk factor, but additional risks may be associated with socioeconomic factors; for example pregnant teenagers are less likely than women over 20 to receive early prenatal care. [4]

Worldwide, rates of teenage births range widely. For example, sub-Saharan Africa has a high proportion of teenage mothers whereas industrialized Asian countries such as South Korea and Japan have very low rates. [5] Teenage pregnancy in developed countries is usually outside of marriage, and carries a social stigma; teenage mothers and their children in developed countries show lower educational levels, higher rates of poverty, and other poorer "life outcomes" compared with older mothers and their children. [6] In the developing world, teenage pregnancy is usually within marriage and does not carry such a stigma. [7]

[edit] Legal aspects of adolescent sexual activity

Age of consent laws worldwide
Age of consent laws worldwide
Main articles: Age of consent and Marriageable age

Many countries have an age of consent, the minimum age at which a person is considered to be capable of legally giving informed consent to any kind of sexual behavior with an adult. But sexual intercourse between adolescents with age difference within 2-3 years are generally not prohibited under law in many countries. The legal age of consent has varied from being age 13 in Japan, age 16 across Canada, and age 16-18 in many states in the United States. In some jurisdictions, the age of consent for homosexual acts may be different from that for heterosexual acts. The age of consent in a particular jurisdiction is typically the same as the age of majority or several years younger. The age at which one can legally marry is also sometimes different from the legal age of consent.

Sexual relations with a person under the age of consent are generally a criminal offense in the jurisdiction in which the crime was committed, with punishments ranging from token fines to life imprisonment. Many different terms exist for the charges laid and include statutory rape, illegal carnal knowledge, or corruption of a minor. In some cases, sexual activity with someone above the legal age of consent but beneath the age of majority can be punishable under laws against contributing to the delinquency of a minor.

[edit] Sex education

Main article: Sex education

Sex education, also called "Sexuality Education" or informally "Sex Ed" is a broad term used to describe education about human sexual anatomy, sexual reproduction, sexual intercourse, human sexual behavior, and other aspects of sexuality, such as body image, sexual orientation, dating, and relationships. Common avenues for sex education are parents, caregivers, friends, school programs, religious groups, popular media, and public health campaigns.

Sexual education in different countries vary. For example, in France sex education has been part of school curricula since 1973. Schools are expected to provide 30 to 40 hours of sex education, and pass out condoms to students in grades eight and nine. In January, 2000, the French government launched an information campaign on contraception with TV and radio spots and the distribution of five million leaflets on contraception to high school students.[8]

According to SIECUS, the Sexuality Information and Education Council of the United States, in most families, parents are the primary sex educators of their adolescents. They found 93% of adults they surveyed support sexuality education in high school and 84% support it in junior high school.[9] In fact, 88% of parents of junior high school students and 80% of parents of high school students believe that sex education in school makes it easier for them to talk to their adolescents about sex.[10] Also, 92% of adolescents report that they want both to talk to their parents about sex and to have comprehensive in-school sex education.[citation needed]

Almost all U.S. students receive some form of sex education at least once between grades 7 and 12; many schools begin addressing some topics as early as grades 5 or 6.[11] However, what students learn varies widely, because curriculum decisions are so decentralized. [12]Two main forms of sex education are taught in American schools: comprehensive and abstinence-only. A 2002 study conducted by the Kaiser Family Foundation found that 58% of secondary school principals describe their sex education curriculum as comprehensive, while 34% said their school's main message was abstinence-only [12] The difference between these two approaches, and their impact on teen behavior, remains a controversial subject in the U.S.[13][14] Some studies have shown abstinence-only programs to have no positive effects.[15] Other studies have shown specific programs to result in more than 2/3 of students maintaining that they will remain abstinent until marriage months after completing such a program[16]; such "virginity pledges," however, are statistically ineffective, [17][18] and over 95% of Americans do, in fact, have sex before marriage. [19]

In Asia the state of sex education programs are at various stages of development. Indonesia, Mongolia, South Korea and Sri Lanka have a systematic policy framework for teaching about sex within schools. Malaysia, the Philippines and Thailand have assessed adolescent reproductive health needs with a view to developing adolescent-specific training, messages and materials. India has programs that specifically aims at school children at the age group of nine to sixteen years. These are included as subjects in the curriculum and generally involves open and frank interaction with the teachers. Bangladesh, Nepal and Pakistan have no coordinated sex education programs.[20]

[edit] Adolescent sexual behavior

[edit] In the United States

Main article: Adolescent sexuality in the United States

Changes in the expression of adolescent sexuality in the United States find their origins in the sexual revolution and is a focus of the culture wars. The U.S. federal government policy under George W. Bush has emphasized sexual abstinence or pre-marital chastity, particularly in sex education with a focus on abstinence-only sex education rather than the harm reduction approach of the safe sex focus. It has extended this approach to foreign policy, using foreign aid to pressure NGO's into ending condom education in third-world countries.

Both boys and girls in the U.S. are "entering puberty at least two years earlier than previous generations."[citation needed] According to one commentator, this means "they are ready for sex earlier physically, but not emotionally or cognitively."[21] In his book Why Gender Matters, researcher Dr Leonard Sax states that teenage sexual encounters are increasingly taking place outside the context of romantic relationships, in purely sexual "hookups."[22] According to a survey commissioned by NBC News and PEOPLE Magazine, while only 27% of 13-16 year olds had been involved in intimate or sexual activity, 8% had had a casual sexual relationship",[23] which has been described by one journalist as a "profound shift in the culture of high school dating and sex."[24]

In 2002, the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health reported a "dramatic trend toward the early initiation of sex."[25] According to the American Academy of Pediatrics "early sexual intercourse among American adolescents represents a major public health problem. Although early sexual activity may be caused by a variety of factors, the media are believed to play a significant role. In film, television, and music, sexual messages are becoming more explicit in dialogue, lyrics, and behavior. In addition, these messages contain unrealistic, inaccurate, and misleading information that young people accept as fact. U.S. Teens rank the media second only to school sex education programs as a leading source of information about sex."[26]

Between 1991 and 2001 the number of high school seniors in the United States who reported that they have had sexual intercourse dropped from 54% to 46%.[27] The vast majority, 87%, of 13-16 year olds have not reported having sexual intercourse and 73% report having not been sexually intimate at all. Three quarters of them say they have not because they feel they are too young, and just as many say they have made a conscious decision not to.[23] 14% more girls than boys (81% vs. 67%) say they have made a conscious decision to wait and 15% more say they believe they are too young (82% vs. 67%). Girls who date or hang out with older boys are said to be "more likely to be pressured into having sex, more likely to get a sexually transmitted disease, and more likely to experience an unwanted pregnancy."[28]

Relative to vaginal intercourse, oral sex has reportedly increased in popularity.[29] Teen pregnancies in the United States decreased 28% between 1990 and 2000 from 117 pregnancies per every 1,000 teens to 84 per 1,000.[30] Based on interviews with legislators, U.S. News & World Report wrote in 2002 that opinion was divided between those advocating "medically accurate sex education" and those seeing anything other than abstinence-based education as opposed to "the values held by most Americans," but there was a general agreement among public health officials that STDs and risky behaviors that include "anything but intercourse" were "rampant" among teens. [31]

Of sexually active 15-19 year olds almost all (98%) use at least one form of contraception. The most popular form, at 94% usage, are condoms and the birth control pill is second at 61%.[32]

The CDC found that between 1991 and 2005, there was a significant linear increase and a significant quadratic change in the number of students who use drugs or alcohol before sexual intercourse.[33] Among the 33.9% of high school students nationwide in 2005 who had had sexual intercourse with one or more persons during the three months preceding the survey, 23.3% had drunk alcohol or used drugs before last sexual intercourse.[33] Among the 33.9% of students, 14.1% of Black students, 25.6% of Hispanic students, and 25.0% of White students reported using alcohol or drugs the last time they had intercourse.[33] Overall, the prevalence of having drunk alcohol or used drugs before last sexual intercourse was higher among male than female students.[33]

Most teenagers (70%) reported that they received some or a lot of information about sex and sexual relationships from their parents. Other sources of information included friends at 53%, school, also at 53%, TV and movies at 51% and magazines at 34%. School and magazines were said to be used as sources of information more by girls than by boys, and sexually active teens were more likely to cite their friends and partners as information sources.[23]

[edit] In Britain

In 2006, a survey conducted by The Observer showed that most adolescents in Britain were waiting longer to have sexual intercourse than they were only a few years earlier. In 2002, 32% of teens were having sex before the legal age of consent of 16; in 2006 it was only 20%. The average age a teen lost their virginity was 17.13 years in 2002; in 2006, it was 17.44 years on average for girls and 18.06 for boys. The most notable drop among teens who reported having sex was 14 and 15 year olds.[34]

Of Western European countries, Britain has the highest rate of teenage pregnancy and sexually transmitted diseases are on the increase.[35] One in nine sexually active teens has chlamydia and 790,000 teens have sexually transmitted infections. In 2006 The Independent newspaper reported that the biggest rise in sexually transmitted infections was in syphilis, which rose by more than 20 per cent, while increases were also seen in cases of genital warts and herpes.[36]

[edit] In Canada

One group of Canadian researchers found a relationship between self esteem and sexual activity. They found that students, especially girls, who were verbally abused by teachers or rejected by their peers were more likely than other students to engage in sex by the end of the 7th grade. The researchers speculate that low self esteem increases the likelihood of sexual activity, "low self-esteem seemed to explain the link between peer rejection and early sex. Girls with a poor self-image may see sex as a way to become 'popular,' according to the researchers."[37]

[edit] In India

Main article: Adolescent sexuality in India
Motivation and frequency

Sexual relationships outside marriage are not uncommon among teenage boys and girls in India. By far, the best predictor of whether or not a girl would be having sex is if her friends were engaging in the same activities. For those girls whose friends were having a physical relationship with a boy, 84.4% were engaging in the same behavior. Only 24.8% of girls whose friends were not having a physical relationship had one themselves. In urban areas, 25.2% of girls have had intercourse and in rural areas 20.9% have. Better indicators of whether or not girls were having sex were their employment and school status. Girls who were not attending school were 14.2%(17.4% v. 31.6%) more likely and girls who were employed were 14.4%(36.0% v. 21.6%) more likely to be having sex.[38]

In the Indian socio cultural milieu girls have less access to parental love, schools, opportunities for self development and freedom of movement than boys do. It has been argued that they may rebel against this lack of access or seek out affection through physical relationships with boys. While the data reflects trends to support this theory, it is inconclusive.[38] The freedom to communicate with adolescent boys was restricted for girls regardless of whether they lived in an urban or rural setting, and regardless of whether they went to school or not. More urban girls than rural girls discussed sex with their friends. Those who did not may have felt "the subject of sexuality in itself is considered an 'adult issue' and a taboo or it may be that some respondents were wary of revealing such personal information."[39]

Contraceptive use

Among Indian girls, "misconceptions about sex, sexuality and sexual health were large. However, adolescents having sex relationships were somewhat better informed about the sources of spread of STDs and HIV/AIDS."[38] While 40.0% of sexually active girls were aware that condoms could help prevent the spread of HIV/AIDS and reduce the likelihood of pregnancy, only 10.5% used a condom during the last time they had intercourse.[38]

[edit] See also

[edit] References

  1. ^ Ponton, Lynn (2000). The Sex Lives of Teenagers. New York: Dutton, 2. ISBN 0452282608. 
  2. ^ John R. Chapman (2000). "Adolescent sex and mass media: a developmental approach.". Adolescence Winter: 799–811. 
  3. ^ Pregnancy and childbirth are leading causes of death in teenage girls in developing countries
  4. ^ Makinson, C. (1985). The health consequences of teenage fertility. Family Planning Perspectives, 17 (3), 132-9. Retrieved May 29, 2006.
  5. ^ Indicator: Births per 1000 women (15-19 ys) – 2002 UNFPA, State of World Population 2003, Retrieved 22 January 2007.
  6. ^ The National Campaign to Prevent Teen Pregnancy. (2002). Not Just Another Single Issue: Teen Pregnancy Prevention's Link to Other Critical Social IssuesPDF (58.5 KB). Retrieved May 27, 2006.
  7. ^ Population Council (2006)Unexplored Elements of Adolescence in the Developing World Population Briefs, January 2006, Vol. 12, No. 1. Retrieved April 18, 2007.
  8. ^ Britain: Sex Education Under Fire UNESCO Courier
  9. ^ SIECUS Report of Public Support of Sexuality Education(1999)SIECUS Report Online
  10. ^ Sex Education in America.(Washington, DC: National Public Radio, Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation, and Kennedy School of Government, 2004), p. 5.
  11. ^ "Sexuality Education in Fifth and Sixth Grades in U.S. Public Schools, 1999" (September/October 2000). Family Planning Perspectices 32 (5). 
  12. ^ a b Sex Education in the U.S.: Policy and Politics (PDF). Issue Update. Kaiser Family Foundation (October 2002). Retrieved on 2007-05-23.
  13. ^ Hauser, Debra (2004). Five Years of Abstinence-Only-Until-Marriage Education: Assessing the Impact. Advocates for Youth. Retrieved on 2007-05-23.
  14. ^ National Abstinence Education Association (2007-04-13). "Mathematica Findings Too Narrow". Press release. Retrieved on 2007-05-25.
  15. ^ Report: Abstinence Not Curbing Teen Sex
  16. ^ Why Know Says They Are Effective In Increasing Teen Abstinence
  17. ^ Bearman PS, Brückner H. Promising the future: virginity pledges and first intercourse. American Journal of Sociology 2001; 106:859-912.
  18. ^ Brückner H, Bearman PS. After the promise: the STI consequences of adolescent virginity pledges. Journal of Adolescent Health 2005; 36:271-278.
  19. ^ Finer L. Trends in premarital sex in the United States, 1954-2003. Public Health Reports, 2007; 23: 73.
  20. ^ Adolescents In Changing Times: Issues And Perspectives For Adolescent Reproductive Health In The ESCAP Region United Nations Social and Economic Commission for Asia and the Pacific
  21. ^ Ponton, Lynn (2000). The Sex Lives of Teenagers. New York: Dutton, 3. ISBN 0452282608. 
  22. ^ Sax, M.D., Ph.D, Leonard (2005). Why Gender Matters. Doubleday, 132. ISBN 038551073X. 
  23. ^ a b c Katie Couric (2005). Nearly 3 in 10 young teens 'sexually active' (html). MSNBC. Retrieved on 2007-01-21.
  24. ^ Alexandra Hall. "The Mating Habits of the Suburban High School Teenager". Boston Magazine (May 2003). 
  25. ^ Adolescent Sexual Behavior and Sexual Health, Renee E. Sieving, Jennifer A. Oliphant, and Robert Wm. Blum, Pediatrics in Review 2002 23: 407-416.
  26. ^ Sexuality, Contraception, and the Media, PEDIATRICS Vol. 107 No. 1 January 2001, pp. 191-194
  27. ^ Trends in Sexual Risk Behaviors Among High School Students--United States, 1991-2001, Center for Disease Control, Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report, 2002]
  28. ^ Why Gender Matters, Leonard Sax, M.D., Ph.D., 2005, Doubleday books, page 136. See also Mike Males, Adult Liaison in the Epidemic of Teenage Birth, Pregnancy and Venereal Disease, Journal of Sex Research, 29:525-45, 1992.
  29. ^ Sax, M.D., Ph.D, Leonard (2005). Why Gender Matters. Doubleday, 121. ISBN 038551073X. 
  30. ^ Henshaw S. K. U.S. Teenage Pregnancy Statistics (2003) The Alan Guttmacher Institute, New York. Data based on NCHS, AGI, CDC, and Census figures.
  31. ^ Anna Mulrine. "Risky Business". U.S. News & World Report (May 27, 2002). 
  32. ^ http://www.kff.org/youthhivstds/upload/U-S-Teen-Sexual-Activity-Fact-Sheet.pdf
  33. ^ a b c d The Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance System (YRBSS): 2005 (PDF). Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (2005). Retrieved on 2007-01-20. page 198.
  34. ^ Denis Campbell (January 22, 2006). "No sex please until we're at least 17 years old, we're British". The Observer. 
  35. ^ Christine Webber, psychotherapist and Dr David Delvin (2005). Talking to pre-adolescent children about sex (html). Broaching the subject. Net Doctor. Retrieved on 2007-01-17.
  36. ^ Jonathan Thompson (November 12, 2006). "New safe sex ads target teens 'on the pull'". The Independent. 
  37. ^ Peer rejection tied to early sex in pre-teens
  38. ^ a b c d R.S.Goya, Indian Institute of Health Management Research, Jaipur, India. Socio-psychological Constructs of Premarital Sex Behavior among Adolescent Girls in India (PDF). Abstract. Princeton University. Retrieved on 2007-01-21.
  39. ^ Dhoundiyal Manju & Venkatesh Renuka (2006). "Knowledge regarding human sexuality among adolescent girls". The Indian Journal of Pediatrics 73 (8): 743. doi:10.1007/BF02898460. 
v • d • e
Sexual ethics
List of topics in sexual ethics
Age of consent
Child sexuality
Adolescent sexuality
Human sexuality
Sexual abuse
Sex and the law