Examines sexual knowledge, attitudes and practices of 84 Mexican-American adolescents. Findings show low sexual knowledge for all subgroups. Few sexually active subjects practiced contraception. Majority indicated birth control makes sex seem preplanned. Respondents appeared traditional in sex attitudes, with virginity and birth-control…

The findings of the study suggest that the distribution of contraceptives on the campus will not produce widespread loss of virginity and promiscuity, and it will not cause a breakdown in the moral structure. The challenge is to create a distribution system which will decrease the presently inefficient contraceptive practices. (Author)

Examined the constructions of sexuality among 470 high school students. Identified five sexual styles (naive, unassured, competent, adventurous, driven), characterized by differences in gender, age, and virginity status, but not simply delineated along demographic lines. Also found that sexual styles differed in level of sexual risk-taking,…

This study examines whether offering sex education to young teenagers affects several measures of adolescent sexual behavior and health: virginity status, contraceptive use, frequency of intercourse, likelihood of pregnancy, and probability of contracting a sexually transmitted disease. Using data from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent…

The present study considers the influence of the parent-child relationship on adolescent virginity status using data from two waves of the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health. The authors examine how adolescents' perceptions of the quality of their parent-child relationships--and the varying levels of parental involvement in their…

Examined self-esteem and sexuality in 141 male and 172 female adolescents. Found no differences in self-esteem of males versus females. Sexual activity or virginity was not related to self-esteem for either gender. Pregnant teenagers did not have different self-esteem levels from nonpregnant. Males who had fathered a child had lower self-esteem…

Expands an existing nonlinear dynamic epidemic model of onset of social activities (EMOSA), motivated by social contagion theory, to quantify the likelihood of pregnancy for adolescent girls of different sexuality statuses. Compares five sexuality/pregnancy models to explain variance in national prevalence curves. Finds that adolescent girls have…

Teenage sexual activity is a major problem confronting the nation and has led to a rising incidence of sexually transmitted diseases, emotional and psychological injuries, and out-of-wedlock childbearing. Abstinence education programs for youth have proven effective in reducing early sexual activity. They can also provide the foundation for…

Points out that biologists and other scientists lack involvement in politics because of unfamiliarity with the political system. Includes suggestions for scientists on how to begin to interact with politics and discusses the professional responsibilities of biologists. (YDS)

Rural secondary school students completed questionnaires defining the terms "abstinence" and "sexual activity." There was no uniform agreement in students' perceptions of the terms. Students' definitions were not more precise than the terms they were asked to define. Age, gender, virginity status, attendance at religious…

The authors presented a questionnaire to students at the beginning of a family life and sex education course. Attitudes of male and female students about such issues as the following are compared and discussed: reasons for course enrollment, attitudes on nonmarital intercourse, intent to marry, and opinions about virginity of peers. The authors…

Public health, once the gem of American social programs, has turned to dross. During the 20th century, the public-health sector wiped smallpox and polio off the U.S. map; virtually eliminated rickets, rubella, and goiter; stopped epidemic typhoid and yellow fever; and brought tuberculosis--once the leading cause of death in U.S. cities--under…

An interdisciplinary course on women and identity for college-level women's studies instructors is presented. Materials for the course are taken from myth, psychology, sociology, feminism, art, and other disciplines. It is divided into seven units: sexuality, fertility, work and family, fear and envy, women's networks, individuality, and social…

Black and white counselors in South Africa live in legally predetermined separate worlds highly charged with emotion. Professional neutrality in such a circumstance would be a myth. Counselors are charged on ethical grounds to address the effects on the client and themselves of the socio-political condition. Failure to do so, even at that level,…

The purposes of this paper are (1) to highlight some of the complex issues involved in teenage pregnancy and its consequences; (2) to comment on some of the problems that make solutions difficult to achieve; and (3) to indicate areas in which further research is of critical importance. Among the issues of teenage pregnancy discussed are the…