Parents’ Perspectives on Family Sexuality Communication from Middle School to High School

Abstract

Parents’ conversations with teens about sex and relationships can play a critical role in improving teenage reproductive health by reducing teens’ risky sexual behavior. However, little is known about how teen-parent communication changes from early to middle adolescence and how parents can tailor their communication to address their teens’ changing development and experiences during these periods. In this longitudinal qualitative study, U.S. parents (N = 23) participated in interviews when their teens were in early adolescence, then again when the teens were in middle adolescence. Participants were largely mothers and were from diverse racial/ethnic and educational backgrounds. Thematic analysis was used to assess continuity and change in parents’ perceptions of teen-parent communication. Findings showed that many parents adapted their conversations with their teens about sex and relationships as teens developed. Once teens had entered high school, more parents described feeling comfortable with their conversations. However, parents also more often reported that their teens responded negatively to the communication in high school than they had in middle school. These findings may help parents to anticipate their own as well as their teens’ responses to family conversations about sex at different developmental time points and to strategize how to effectively talk with their teens about sex and relationships to improve their teens’ overall reproductive health.

Determinants of teenage pregnancy in Degua Tembien District, Tigray, Northern Ethiopia: A community-based case-control study

“…Numerous factors may explain why parents did not communicate about RH issues with their teenagers. The reasons as perceived by parents could be: teenagers are believed to be too young for RH discussions [ 27 ], the topic is considered as taboo, parents lacked knowledge of what to communicate, and the belief that teenagers had enough knowledge [ 28 ]. Communication between parents and adolescents could enable parents to address challenges of their adolescents and could help adolescents in delaying sexual activity and pregnancy [ 20 ].…”

Concerns and educational needs of Iranian parents regarding the sexual health of their male adolescents: a qualitative study

“…Parents might experience several challenges about when, what, and how to talk to their children about puberty, reproduction, and sexuality [11]. Many parents do not acknowledge their adolescents as sexual beings or may underestimate their engagement in sexual activity so they may not see the need to discuss [12,13]. In a review study has been conducted with American or European samples, barriers to parental communication about sex have been attributed to demographic factors (like cultural, political, and religious factors), inadequate knowledge, embarrassment or feeling uncomfortable when talking about sexuality, and a belief that their adolescent was not ready to talk about sexuality [14].…”

Strengthening Comprehensive Sexuality Education Anew: A Commentary

“…Specifically, the delay in conversations about sex has been attributed to a misconception that talking about sexuality means giving children and adolescents permission to explore and engage in sexual activities 6 . The fact that teenage youth become more reluctant to talk to their parents about sex in 10th grade versus 7th‐grade points to the importance of initiating these sensitive but important conversations at a younger age 10 …”

“…These restrictions make it even more important for parents, guardians, and other caregivers to be given additional resources to strengthen their capacity to complement school‐directed CSE for their children. To guide trusted adults in supporting CSE, they need “accurate and complete information from medically accurate resources” about “best practices, specific tips, and resources.” 6 In addition, health education programs need to “include outreach to parents” to help increase their “skills and comfort in talking with teens about sex and relationships.” 10 However, despite the potential of the role of trusted adults and general classroom educators, the issue remains: trusted adults, as well as generalist educators, are not professionally prepared, nor sufficiently credentialed, to effectively counsel youth on sexual decision‐making.…”