CHD3243 Contexts of Adolescence Spring 2015 Exam 3 Study Guide Chapter 11 Sexual Behavior book outline Sexual ethics in the US has changed greatly during the late 1960s early 1970s the time of the sexual revolution For instance most adolescents today are far more open about sex and are less hesitant in talking about it Due to increase sexual activity there has been an increase in sexually transmitted diseases Today s adolescents have the same urges as those in past generations but today teens urges are constantly stimulated and the guidelines for their control or expression are less clearly defined A Changing Attitudes and Behavior 1 Premarital Sexual Behavior Only about 7 of teens have experienced sexual intercourse by age 13 About 30 of 15 17 About 66 70 of 18 19 quarters of adolescent girls say that their first sexual partner was either the same age as themselves or between 1 and 3 years older than themselves 43 of high school males say they had sex because of opportunity whereas 23 said they were in love 54 of high school females say they had sex because they were in love and only 11 said they just had the opportunity Most females who lose their virginity do so with a steady boyfriend 9 of young women reported having been forced into it and the younger the girl at age of first intercourse the more likely that force was involved Males report their first experience with intercourse was more satisfying than females o Males recall it as being more physically satisfying and less guilt provoking o Moth males and females remember their experience as being more emotionally intense if their sexual partner was someone for whom they felt affection Overall today s teens are having sex earlier than their grandparents but not their parents o Today s teens are less likely to have sex at a very young age 13 14 less likely to have ever engaged in intercourse less likely to be sexually active and less likely to have had 4 or more partners than those in the early 1990s For high school teens the pattern of sex is serial monogamy one dates and has intercourse with only one partner at a time Age The older they are the more likely they are to have premarital coitus sexual 2 Correlates intercourse Race Ethnicity o African Americans report a higher incidence of premarital intercourse than Caucasians In high school it s 67 vs 44 o Latinos fall midway between Blacks and Whites o Asian American teens are less likely to be sexually active than teens from other racial and ethnic groups They Even postpone kissing and petting until twenties CHD3243 Contexts of Adolescence Spring 2015 Exam 3 Study Guide Religion Most adolescents who indicate that they are abstinent claim to be so Boyfriend or girlfriend Those who have one report to be more sexually intercourse because of religious reasons than those who do not Young age at first intercourse o Those who are youngest at first intercourse tend to engage in more sexual behavior later in adolescence o More likely to be victim of sexual violence o Early intercourse is an indicator of an adolescent in trouble Age at puberty The earlier a girl reaches menarche or a boy reaches puberty the younger she he will likely by when she first has intercourse Parental behaviors and relationships o Parents who are warm and close with children who remain abstinent delay intercourse and have fewer sex partners o Parents who regulate and monitor have less sexually active teens but too much restriction causes children who are more sexually active o Family constellation Girls who grow up in a father absent home are more likely to seek sexual relationships as a means of finding affection and social approval Teens from reconstituted families report more sexual experience than those from intact families Peer standards Discussions give more positive affirming messages than those from parents increase the likelihood that a listener will become sexually active and it shows that sex is more common Siblings o The closer the sibling relationship the stronger the link between an older sibling s sexual behavior and a younger s For example Younger sisters to an older sibling who is a teenage motheris 5times more likely to become pregnant Gender Girls are more likely to become sexually involved in order to express love intimacy and commitmentthan boys Problem behaviors o Youths who engage in early sexual activity are more likely to abuse drugs The strongest predictors of high risk sexual activity is alcohol use Educational expectations o Higher the adolescent educational expectations the less likely they are to have o Adolescents who are out of school and employed have a higher frequency of premarital sexual intercourse premarital sex than students Socioeconomic status Because of less educated parents and low SES these adolescents have lower educational aspirations which can lead to premarital sex 3 Other Mutual Sexual Behaviors CHD3243 Contexts of Adolescence Spring 2015 Exam 3 Study Guide 30 of the virgins reported that they had either masturbated a partner or been masturbated by a partner Oral sex has now become a much more common recreational activity for adolescents o Virgins are significantly less likely to have engaged in oral sex o High SES teens are more likely to engage in oral sex o Adolescents do not consider oral sex sex o Neither of these carry risk of pregnancy but can transmit STDs 4 Masturbation Refers to any type of self stimulation that produces erotic arousal regardless of whether that arousal proceeds to orgasm Greater percentage of males do it Serves as a useful function in helping the individual learn about his or her body learn how to respond sexually develop sexual identity and achieve sexual release The only ill effect comes from guilt fear or anxiety when the teen believes the practice will do harm B Sex and Its Meaning 1 What are adolescents seeking When teens have sex typically they are trying to release needs that have nothing to do with sex o Emotional needs include curiosity the desire to receive affection loneliness need to gain status confirmation of masculinity femininity bolstering of self esteem or need to express anger or escape boredom 2 Sexual pluralism Americans live in a pluralistic society a society in which there are many different competing standards of behavior o abstinence until marriage sex with affection commitment and responsibility o sex with affection and commitment but no responsibility less likely to use birth o sex with affection but no
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