Laura Sessions Stepp, Washington Post
Tuesday, March 4, 2008
Teenage romance can be a good thing and so can dating, a large study of youth in grades 7 through 12 has concluded.
An analysis of national data conducted by Child Trends, a research
center that focuses on children and youth, found that sexually active
teens who identify their relationships with a partner as romantic and
who go out socially with that person are more likely to use
contraceptives than similar teens in more-casual relationships.
This may be because they feel more comfortable talking about
contraception with a partner they know and trust, said Jennifer
Manlove, a senior research scientist at Child Trends and one of the
study's authors. Among girls in particular, good communication and the
quality of the relationship appear to play an important role in
decision-making.
The analysis, taken from information on more than 4,500 unmarried,
sexually experienced young people, also found that girls were more
likely to use contraception with boys their age than with older males.
The teens were, on average, 16 years old when they first had sex.
A fact sheet released by Child Trends contained some sobering news
drawn from the study. For example, a teen's contraceptive use may
change from partner to partner. Using birth control consistently in one
relationship doesn't necessarily mean that a young person will do the
same with another partner.
Use of contraception, in fact, is not as regular as health officials
might hope. Four out of 10 sexually active students reported not using
contraceptives at all or using them only infrequently. Students who
reported having multiple partners were particularly likely not to use
protection.
In light of this study, Manlove said, it's not enough for parents to
focus simply on whether their kids are having sex. They should engage
their kids in conversations about what healthy relationships look like,
pay attention to the power dynamics of any relationship and stress the
importance of contraception.
The study can be found in the August 2007 issue of the journal Demography.