Sexuality (and Lack Thereof) in Adolescence and Early Adulthood: A Review of the Literature

Abstract

Youth sexuality has been primarily studied with a focus on its potential public health issues, such as sexually transmitted infections and unwanted pregnancies, and its comorbidity with other risky behaviors. More recently, it has been studied as a normative step in romantic partnerships, either pre- or post-marital, as well as outside the context of romantic involvement. In this paper, we review the extensive literature on sexuality in adolescence and early adulthood both within and outside romantic relationships (i.e., casual sexual relationships and experiences; CSREs). Furthermore, the recent recognition of youth sexuality as a developmental task has led to a renewed interest from scholars in youth who abstain from sexual encounters, whether deliberately or not. A brief overview of the literature on cultural differences in sexuality, and sexual-minority youth sexual development is also provided. This paper concludes by suggesting future directions to bring the field of youth sexuality and romantic relationships forward.

Gender Difference in the Influence of Family Interaction and Parenting Behaviours on Youth Sexual Intention

“…In recent years, research on youth sexuality has also looked into intimate relationships and sexuality as part of the normal sexual development in youths (Boislard et al 2016). However, with a collectivist culture, like those in Asian and Arab countries, that emphasises social responsibility and relationships (Boislard et al 2016), the idea of unmarried youths practicing sexual activity as part of their normal growing process is not well accepted. Malaysia is a conservative country that opposes premarital sexual activity, and under Malaysian law, marriage is only allowed when youths reach 18 years of age.…”

Pathways Linking Childhood Maltreatment and Adolescent Sexual Risk Behaviors: The Role of Attachment Security

“…For example, it is possible that avoidant attachment is associated with a younger age at first intercourse for boys because their first experience was in a casual context. Moreover, as it is not socially accepted for girls to have many sexual partners and casual sexual behavior (Boislard et al, 2016), avoidantly attached girls may prefer to have their first sexual intercourse at the average age for first intercourse. Data regarding the type of sexual partner (casual or romantic) at first intercourse were not available in our study.…”

“…Studies have showed that SRBs are likely to be underestimated in studies, as they are perceived as socially unacceptable (Brener, Billy, & Grady, 2003). In return, it may be socially acceptable for some subgroups (e.g., for boys) to have had many sexual experiences (e.g., more sexual partners and casual partners) (Boislard et al, 2016;Brener et al, 2003). Thus, several strategies were used to minimize biases (Bradburn, Sudman, & Wansink, 2004), such as self-report questionnaires (rather than face-to-face interviews) and anonymous surveys (questionnaires returned in a sealed envelope and anonymous codification to link all the questionnaires).…”

“…We specifically tested the role of avoidant attachment and anxious attachment. For SRBs, the number of sexual partners and age at first intercourse were selected because they are commonly used to operationalize SRBs among youth (Boislard et al, 2016) and were investigated as separate outcomes. We also examined casual sexual behavior (i.e., sexual contacts with strangers), which reflects contemporary changes in sexual relationships (Boislard et al, 2016).…”

“…such as having multiple sexual partners and a higher risk for sexually transmitted infections (Boislard et al, 2016).…”