Sexual behavior and practices of adolescent students in the city of Recife, Brazil

Abstract

Introduction: The adolescent sexuality should not be understood only from the biological point of view; it is necessary to consider the whole social context.Objective: To characterize the adolescents’ behavior and sexual practices , according to sex.Methods: Cross-sectional study with adolescents aged 14 to 19 years registered in the Recife-PE state. A questionnaire with sociodemographic data and sexual behavior was used. The data were analyzed using SPSS, being employed a descriptive analysis and the tests chi-square and Mann-Whitney.Results: The data from 674 adolescents with an average age of 16.07 ± 1.46 years were analyzed. It was verified sexual initiation in 52.9% of boys and 38.7% girls. There was a significant difference between the number of partners (p = 0.001) with the boys showing greater quantitative. The barrier method was the most used in the first (68.8%) and last intercourse (52.2%). There was a significant difference in the first and last intercourse, in use (p = 0.006; p = 0.010) and type of contraceptive method (p= 0.001; p 0.001). Regarding the social network, riends were the most popular. However, it was observed a significant difference (p = 0.026), being the maternal figure more prevalent in girls. There was a significant difference in the absence of sexual initiation (p= 0.001). The lack of opportunity was the most reported condition by boys (52.2%) and marry virgin by the girls (33.9%).Conclusion: Most had already had sexual life, with higher prevalence in males. Regarding the sexual practices and behaviors in most conditions analyzed different values between the sexes were observed, with greater freedom and permissiveness in males.