Mother’s perceptions and concerns over sharing sexual and reproductive health information with their adolescent daughters- A qualitative study among mothers of adolescent girls aged 14-19 years in the developing world, Sri Lanka

Abstract

Introduction Studies across the world have shown that parent-adolescent SRH communication can prevent unhealthy SRH practices among adolescents and promote their sexual and reproductive health. Parents’ ability to provide individualized sexuality education to suit the needs of their children, their family, and societal values, and the fact that children have more opportunities in the family, makes parent-based sexuality education of children a better approach to Sri Lankan context. Objective To explore mother’s perceptions and concerns over sharing sexual and reproductive health information with their daughters among Sinhalese mothers of adolescent girls aged 14–19 years in Sri Lanka Methodology Six Focus group discussions were carried out among mothers of adolescent girls aged 14–19 years. Each focus group discussion included 10–12 participants. A Focus Group Discussion guide developed after an extensive literature search and expert opinion was used to retrieve information from mothers. Data management and analysis mainly followed an inductive approach to thematic analysis principles. The analysis results were presented in narrative form using quotes in respondents’ own words that highlighted the theory. Results The mean age of the participants was 43.5 years while 62.4% (n = 40) were educated above the Ordinary level. Analysis of data identified eight main themes from the FGDs. Many mothers thought that sexual and reproductive information is important to adolescent girls. They tried to keep their girl adolescent informed about SRH issues that she may face during this time. They preferred abstinence-only education over abstinence-plus education. Lack of skills and lack of knowledge on adolescent SRH issues was a major challenge identified by the mothers to communicate SRH matters with their children. Conclusions and recommendations Although mothers perceived their role as primary sex educators to their children, they were not confident about their knowledge and skills in discussing SRH matters with children. Implementation of interventions to improve mothers’ attitudes and skills in communicating SRH matters with children is recommended.

Exploring the status of mother and adolescent daughter communication on reproductive health: a cross-sectional study

“…Differences in communication abilities, the significance of SRH conversations, and the accessibility of information regarding sexual and reproductive health could all contribute to this variance. 10 The majority of mothers who took part in the study thought that adolescents shouldn't have access to information about sexual health, according to Mataraarachchi et al (2023). Mothers in this study stated that they would feel more comfortable talking to their adolescents about sexual matters if they had previously received sex education in school.…”