Received Sex Education Research Articles

Missed conceptions or misconceptions: perceived infertility among unmarried young adults in the United States.

Perceived infertility is an individual's belief that she or he is unable to conceive or impregnate, regardless of whether this belief is medically accurate. This perception may lead to contraceptive nonuse, which may, in turn, lead to unintended pregnancy. Little research has examined perceived infertility among young adults, including potential associations with contraceptive behaviors. The frequency of perceived infertility among young adults was assessed using 2009 data from a nationally representative telephone survey of 1,800 unmarried men and women aged 18-29. Multinomial regression analyses assessed associations between respondents' perceived infertility and selected background, reproductive knowledge, sexual experience and contraceptive use characteristics. Overall, 19% of women and 13% of men believed that they were very likely to be infertile. Hispanic women and women who had received public assistance in the past year had elevated odds of perceived infertility (odds ratios, 3.4 and 3.0, respectively), as did Hispanic men and men of other racial or ethnic minorities, except blacks (2.5 and 6.1, respectively). Men who had some college education, had received sex education or were not in a current relationship had decreased odds of thinking they were very likely to be infertile (0.3-0.4). Among men, perceived infertility was associated with the belief that they were likely to have sex without using a contraceptive in the next three months (2.6). A substantial proportion of young adults believe they are infertile. Improved provider counseling and sex education may be useful in helping them to better understand their actual probability of infertility, and this knowledge may lead to improved contraceptive use.

Young People with Learning Disabilities and the Development of Sexual Relationships

In modern society the needs of young people with learning disabilities to develop sexual relationships is increasingly recognised, and supported in legislation and social policy. The aim of this small scale, exploratory study was to understand whether young people with learning disabilities receive sex education and are given accessible information and support relating to sexualised behaviours. The study gained professional and parental views on this topic, together with those of the young people to understand their future aspirations and the barriers they may face. The research design involved semi-structured interviews with 12 purposively selected respondents including teachers, public health nurses, young people and their parents. Results indicated that this group of young people do receive sex education but that misunderstandings about sex and relationships are still prevalent. Professionals and parents may lack the knowledge and confidence to provide appropriate information in an accessible manner, and for professionals the emphasis is on managing inappropriate sexualised behaviours. When it comes to preparing young people for emotional relationships all those involved in the study struggled with this and the young people’s aspirations differed from those of their care givers. The study concludes that support in this particular area of personal development needs to be developed.

Sex education during the school‐aged years influences sexual attitudes and sexual health in college: A comparative study from Korea

Sex education is provided routinely to school-aged children in many countries without enough evidence that it will benefit them when they become adults. The purpose of this study was to examine the long-term influence of the sex education that was provided during the school-aged years on the attitudes, behaviors, and sexual health among male and female college students in Korea. For this descriptive, comparative study, the data were obtained from 3609 male and 2180 female college students by using the proportional quota sampling method. Overall, the female students had more opportunities for sex education. Receiving this education during the school-aged years lowered the sexual double standard score but was not related to sexual activity among the male and female students. Receiving sex education at different time points during the school-aged years had differential influences on the sexual attitudes and indicators of sexual health between the male and the female students. The results of this study suggest extending the role of school nurses to include redesigning the content of sex education programs, based on the sex and age of the students, and using midwives to provide sex education in community settings.

Sex education in Swedish schools as described by young women

Objectives To investigate sex education in Swedish schools regarding content, satisfaction, and suggested improvements, as described by teenagers and young adults.Methods Waiting-room survey conducted among 225 female patients (aged 13–25) at youth and student health clinics in one large-, and one medium-sized Swedish city.Results Most participants (97%, n = 218) had received sex education in school, of varying content and quality. Sixty percent thought basic body development was sufficiently covered. Insufficiently covered topics included sexual assault (96%), sexual harassment (94%), pornography (90%), abortion (81%), emergency contraception (80%), fertility (80%), and pregnancy (59%). Thirty percent received no information about chlamydia, and almost half reported that condyloma and human papillomavirus had not been addressed. The youngest respondents (13–19 years) were significantly more likely to have been told about emergency contraception, homosexuality, bisexuality, and transsexuality. Nearly half (46%) considered ‘acceptable’ the knowledge gained from sex education provided at school whereas more than a third considered it ‘poor’ or ‘very poor’. Suggested improvements included more information, more discussion, greater emphasis on sexual diversity, and more knowledgeable teachers.Conclusions Content and quality of sex education varied greatly. Most respondents thought many topics were insufficiently covered, sex education should be more extensive, and teachers better educated.

The Information and Attitude Levels of the Educational Psychologists and Special Education Teachers in the Process of Sex Education for the Adolescents with Autism

The Information and Attitude Levels of the Educational Psychologists and Special Education Teachers in the Process of Sex Education for the Adolescents with Autism

The effects of sex education in promoting sexual and reproductive health in Portuguese university students

The goal of this research was to analyze the significance of sex education in schools and what are its effects in promoting healthy sexual behaviour among university students. The sample included 3278 students. Results showed students who had sex education in school mentioned more often having had fewer sexual risk behaviours (less occasional partners, less sex associated to alcohol and drugs, less STIs, less unwanted pregnancies and abortions). Most young people have reasonable knowledge, positive attitudes about contraception/STIs, and skills of condom use. Our study demonstrates positive associations between receiving sex education and protective sexual behaviours, knowledge, motivation and skills.

Sex education among Portuguese adolescent students

The purpose of this study was to assess the importance of sex education in school context and its effects in sexual behaviour, knowledge and attitudes regarding HIV among adolescents. The sample included 5050 Portuguese adolescent students from the Portuguese HBSC study. This study uses a subset of 8th and 10th graders (n=3494). Results showed adolescents who had sex education classes mentioned more often not having had sexual intercourse, better knowledge regarding HIV and more positive attitudes about HIV infected people. This study suggests positive associations between receiving sex education and protective sexual behaviours, knowledge and attitudes.

Impact of Timing of Sex Education on Teenage Pregnancy in Nigeria: Cross-sectional Survey of Secondary School Students

The objective of this study was to explore whether the time at which sex education was provided had any impact on reported cases of unintended pregnancies. A cross-sectional survey of secondary school students and their teachers was conducted using self-administered questionnaires. The participants were 1,234 students aged 14-17 years and 46 teachers in 5 secondary schools in South Eastern Nigeria. The outcome measures were reported pregnancies within the last 3 years by type of school and class level; class level at the time of receiving sex education at school; and age at the time of receiving sex education at home. In all schools, sex education was provided at all the junior and senior secondary school levels (JSS and SSS, respectively). Overall, reported cases of unintended pregnancies were highest among the junior students. In the private schools, four in ten teachers reported pregnancies among JSS 3 students. Almost four in ten teachers in public schools reported pregnancies among JSS 2 students. Of all the students, about three in ten reported pregnancies among JSS 2 and 3 students respectively. At home, sex education was provided at the mean age of 16 years (SD ± 2.2). All participants cited financial need and marital promise as major predisposing factors. About four in ten students did not use contraceptives during their first sexual experience. This study highlights the need to introduce sex education much earlier, possibly before the JSS levels. At home, sex education may have greater impact if provided before the age of 14 years. Efforts should be made to address the factors predisposing to teenage pregnancy.

Efficacy of sildenafil on erectile dysfunction of newly-weds

To explore the efficacy of sildenafil on erectile dysfunction (ED) of newlyweds, the author studied 60 outpatients within a month of marriage, who suffered from sexual intercourse (SI) failure caused by ED and showed no improvement after receiving sex education and psychological consultation. The patients were given oral sildenafil, 100 mg for the first and second times, 50 mg for the third and fourth times, no more than once every day, with a 1- to 3-day break between every two times. Four times of sildenafil administration formed one course of treatment. Sildenafil was taken 1 h before SI and was aided with adequate sexual stimulation. The rates of successful SI due to improved erection during and after a course of sildenafil treatment were 93.3% (56/60) and 85% (51/60), both P > 0.05. In the groups with one and more than one SI failure the successful SI rates after a sildenafil treatment course were 93.1% (27/29) and 77.4% (24/31), both P > 0.05. Oral sildenafil with psychological therapy in the treatment of ED of newlyweds proves to be effective in restoring the patients' sexual function and relieving their mental pressure or stress.

Parents' Plans to Discuss Sexuality with Their Young Children

Two hundred and fourteen (214) parents of young children (M age = 6.75 years) were surveyed about their plans for sexuality discussions with their children. Parents were asked to indicate when they would first discuss sex education with their children for 15 specific topics, how effective they perceived themselves to be at discussing each topic, and to describe their experiences receiving sex education from their own parents. Parents reported being educated mostly by their mothers and rated both of their parents as ineffective educators. Compared to a similar survey of parents conducted in 1982, parents in the current study intended to discuss sexual abuse at an earlier age but to delay discussing genital differences, birth, and reproduction. Compared to fathers, mothers intended to discuss sexuality at earlier ages and anticipated being more effective. Intended age of discussion differed between ethnic groups and between parents who described themselves as being religious versus not religious. Parents’ intentions to discuss varied between sons and daughters for certain topics, and there were two topics that a considerable number of parents did not intend to discuss with their children (i.e., masturbation and nocturnal emissions). Suggestions for helping parents communicate more comfortably with their young children about sexuality topics are offered.

Sexual behaviour among Italian adolescents: Knowledge and use of contraceptives

Background Comprehensive data concerning the sexual behaviour of Italian adolescents are lacking; the planning of prevention programmes is therefore difficult.Methods The current study evaluates the knowledge of Italian adolescents about sexuality and their use of methods to prevent pregnancy and sexually transmitted infections. The age at first intercourse in the current sample was compared to that found in past samples to ascertain whether sex education was needed at an earlier age. The efficacy of one school-based sex education programme was analysed.Results Overall 630 students in three Italian cities were surveyed. Just over half the students were sexually active. Among these, the mean age at first intercourse was 15.6 years (SD ± 1.3). The contraception most widely used was the condom although ‘coitus interruptus’, ‘natural family planning’ and ‘no method’ were also mentioned. The knowledge among students from Latina, after they had received sex education, was significantly better.Conclusion Our data show a lower mean age at first intercourse than has been reported for earlier periods by other authors. School-based sexual education is effective in improving knowledge. Sexual health services for young people must be available and counselling services improved.

Unmet Needs for Reproductive Health Knowledge among Unmarried Migrant Youth

Objective To explore the deep reason for the lack of reproductive knowledge among migrant youth. Methods Qualitative research method was used with in-depth interview as the major approach to collect data. Results The results showed that lack of formal sexual education and the special social status were deep reason for their knowledge lack. Very few of them had received sex education in school. Before falling in love and beginning to date, most girls and some boys have no interest in sexual related knowledge. The knowledge they have usually come first from peer communication and are full of mistakes. As growing up, mass media, like TV and magazines begin to be their major knowledge sources. But many get the information from TV dramas, novels or advertisements, and few from formal educational programs. Working long hours each day, with little leisure time and living isolated in cities, migrant people rarely benefit from the ongoing education activities in cities. Conclusion Special sexual and reproductive health education program are needed urgently among unmarried migrant youth, particularly female.

The impact of sex education on HIV knowledge and condom use among adolescent females in the Dominican Republic

The Dominican Republic has witnessed a significant increase of HIV/AIDS in recent years, particularly among young women. Prior research suggested that sex education could be an effective tool in combating risky sexual behaviors in adolescents; yet, most of this research has been conducted with Caucasian study populations, resulting in limited generalizability to Latino populations. The present study sought to address this gap by examining the effects of sex education on HIV/AIDS knowledge and condom use among young women in the Dominican Republic. Data were analyzed from 1,608 female adolescent and young adult respondents to the ENJOVEN survey. Logistic regression models were used to investigate the relation between exposure to sex education and HIV/AIDS knowledge, current and consistent condom use. Respondents who reported receiving sex education were 1.72 times more likely to have high HIV/AIDS knowledge than respondents who reported not receiving sex education (CI: 1.36-2.18, p = .000). Respondents who reported receiving sex education were 2.52 times more likely to report currently using condoms than respondents who reported not receiving sex education (CI: 1.65-3.85, p = .000). The results provide additional evidence that sex education programs are effective at increasing HIV/AIDS knowledge and condom use in young Dominican women.

Knowledge about Genital Herpes Amongst First Time Attenders at a Department of Genitourinary Medicine

Genital herpes is the most common cause of genital ulceration in the developed world, and its prevalence in the United Kingdom is rising. Public knowledge of the infection is often limited. We aimed to assess knowledge among patients attending an outpatient genitourinary clinic in Scotland. A questionnaire was designed to collect information about educational qualifications and knowledge of genital herpes. In the knowledge section, each correct answer was given a score of 1; thus the maximum possible score was 12. Two hundred and ten individuals who attended as new patients at a walk-in genitourinary medicine clinic were invited to complete the questionnaire. Two hundred and seven patients completed the questionnaire. Overall 63% of responses were answered correctly. Knowledge of genital herpes was better in patients who worked in healthcare (8.3 v 6.9, p=0.019) and in patients with educational qualifications gained from college or university compared to those gained at school (7.6 v 6.5, p=0.009). Level of knowledge was not related to age or gender; receiving sex education at school did not appear to improve knowledge of genital herpes. Knowledge of genital herpes among patients attending an outpatient genitourinary clinic in Scotland is reasonable but needs to improve to combat the rising prevalence of the infection. The areas of misunderstanding identified in our study could be targeted for public education.

성교육 프로그램이 여고생의 성지식과 성태도에 미치는 효과

The purpose of this study is to develope sex education program for high school girls and to verify the effectiveness of the program in terms of improving the knowledge and attitude of them after executing the program. The subjects of study are 126 girls from K high school in Changwon city and they are divided into an experimental group and control group, and each group has 63 students. The program is executed 8 sessions during 8 weeks and the necessary time is 50 minutes for each session. The experimental group who has received sex education shows higher level of sex knowledge after sex education than control group, and the experimental group shows higher level of sound attitude toward sexual matters after sex education. The effect of education regarding sexual knowledge and attitude in an experimental group are lasted even after the education is finished. Conclusionally, these results shows that the sex education program which is developed for this study is effective.

Knowledge of Correct Condom Use and Consistency of Use among Adolescents in Four Countries in Sub-Saharan Africa

Using data from the 2004 National Adolescent Surveys, this paper undertook a detail analysis of knowledge of correct condom use and consistency of use, as well as their covariates, among adolescents in Burkina Faso, Ghana, Malawi and Uganda. The strongest predictor of knowledge of correct condom use among both male and female adolescents is exposure to a condom use demonstration. In Burkina Faso, Ghana and Uganda, adolescents who have seen a condom demonstration are 2 to 5 times as likely as those who have not to have good knowledge of correct condom use. Age, ever received sex education in school, ever attended school and exposure to the radio are also significant predictors of knowledge of correct use, particularly among men. As indicated by behavior among young men, the extent to which adolescents use the condom consistently varies across countries. Yet, it is nowhere near the required 100% level. The proportion reporting consistent use of the method in the 3 months preceding the survey is 38% in Burkina Faso, 47% in Ghana, 20% in Malawi and 36% in Uganda. Age difference between partners is a major determinant of consistent use of condoms: young men whose partner is 0-4 years younger are about two and a half times more likely to use condoms consistently than those who whose partner is 5-9 years younger. Other important predictors of consistent condom use are residence, education, living arrangement and exposure to mass media, specifically the radio and newspaper. Findings from this study point to areas that policy and program can address to provide adolescents access to the kinds of information and service they need to achieve healthy sexual and reproductive lives.

The Association Between Sex Education and Youth’s Engagement in Sexual Intercourse, Age at First Intercourse, and Birth Control Use at First Sex

Purpose Sex education is intended to provide youth with the information and skills needed to make healthy and informed decisions about sex. This study examined whether exposure to formal sex education is associated with three sexual behaviors: ever had sexual intercourse, age at first episode of sexual intercourse, and use of birth control at first intercourse. Methods Data used were from the 2002 National Survey of Family Growth, a nationally representative survey. The sample included 2019 never-married males and females aged 15–19 years. Bivariate and multivariate analyses were conducted using SUDAAN. Interactions among subgroups were also explored. Results Receiving sex education was associated with not having had sexual intercourse among males (OR = .42, 95% CI = .25–.69) and postponing sexual intercourse until age 15 among both females (OR = .41, 95% CI = .21–.77) and males (OR = .29, 95% CI = .17–.48). Males attending school who had received sex education were also more likely to use birth control the first time they had sexual intercourse (OR = 2.77, 95% CI = 1.13–6.81); however, no associations were found among females between receipt of sex education and birth control use. These patterns varied among sociodemographic subgroups. Conclusions Formal sex education may effectively reduce adolescent sexual risk behaviors when provided before sexual initiation. Sex education was found to be particularly important for subgroups that are traditionally at high risk for early initiation of sex and for contracting sexually transmitted diseases.

Cognitive impact of a research-based school sex education programme

The cognitive impact of a research-based, teacher-delivered sex education programme for 13–15-year olds (SHARE) was evaluated in 25 Scottish schools. The relationship between cognitions targeted by SHARE and the sexual behaviour of teenagers who had first sexual intercourse after receiving sex education was assessed. The belief that there are alternatives to sexual intercourse in romantic/sexual relationships and the intention to resist unwanted sexual activities were significantly correlated with delayed sexual intercourse. An extended theory of planned behaviour, including descriptive norm and anticipated regret, provided a good model of the cognitive correlates of consistent condom use, explaining 25.9% of the variance. The impact of the SHARE programme on targeted cognitions was compared to that of conventional sex education by means of a randomised controlled trial, taking account of school effects. Those receiving SHARE had significantly higher scores on the belief that there are alternatives to sexual intercourse in romantic/sexual relationships, intentions to resist unwanted sexual activities and intentions to discuss condoms with sexual partners. SHARE recipients were also less likely to agree that condom use would interrupt sexual fun and reduce sexual enjoyment. However, mean differences between trial arms were small and no significant differences were found for the strongest cognitive correlates of consistent condom use, including the intention to always use a condom.

Sex education sources and attitudes toward sexual precautions across a decade.

75 college students responded to Moore and Barling's AIDS questionnaire. Coopersmith's Self-esteem Inventory, and a background survey regarding sex education and sexual and religious activity. The most commonly reported sources of sex education were peers, parents, and high school courses, respectively. Ratings of the most important of 10 potential sources of sex education included peers, high school courses, and religious institutions, respectively. None of these were significantly correlated with future condom use. Virgins reported more open communication with parents about sex. Sexual experience was positively related to more confusion about sexual precautions but negatively related to foreclosed attitudes toward such precautions. Some types of religious involvement (church attendance and campus religious organization membership) were related to foreclosed attitudes. Data in attitudinal and sex education were compared with data collected in 1991. Although students more frequently reported having received sex education in 2000, their attitudes toward utilizing sexual precautions have become somewhat more diffused.

Care of adolescents with severe learning disability from tuberous sclerosis.

A postal study was completed by 138 members of the Tuberous Sclerosis Association for individuals with severe learning disabilities from tuberous sclerosis complex (TSC) (78 males, median 20 years of age; 60 females median 19 years 6 months of age) to investigate the abilities and care needs of these adolescents and young adults. Results were compared with a Salford community survey of young people with severe learning disability (SLD) from a variety of causes (42 males, median 17 years; 29 females, median 17 years 8 months of age). Those with SLD associated with TSC had a higher level of verbal disability and were more dependent for managing toileting and bathing. The young people with TSC were less able to interact socially, showing autistic behaviour. Sexually, they were less aware and less active. Only 20 were thought by their parents to have received sex education.