Beyond abstinence-only: Relationships between abstinence education and comprehensive curriculum content

Introduction: In the United States, a great debate exists as to which approach to school-based sexuality education is likely to yield the most positive and effective results for youth, in particular between programs based on abstinence or those that are more comprehensive. Few studies have explored potential overlaps between these approaches. The primary aim of this study was to test relationships between abstinence education and comprehensive curriculum content.

Methods: Data were collected from a diverse sample of sexuality education teachers throughout Florida (N = 462). We operationalized teaching abstinence using self-reports (abstinence-only, abstinence-based, and no abstinence) as well as an index based upon the eight guidelines specified in Section 510 of Title V of the Social Security Act.

Results: Logistic regression analyses revealed that ascribing to the federal guidelines of teaching abstinence was not significantly associated with teachers' self-reports of teaching “abstinence-only.” Rather, the more teachers ascribed to the federal abstinence guidelines, the more likely they were to teach about human development, personal skills, relationships, sexual response, and lifecourse issues. Additionally, teaching abstinence was positively related to teaching about abortion, contraception, pregnancy, relationship violence, and media influences upon sexuality.

Discussion: Teachers who taught abstinence in greater depth, beyond “abstinence-only,” tended to be more comprehensive in their orientations with students. This provides further evidence that abstinence and comprehensive approaches are not mutually exclusive; indeed, abstinence is a fundamental component of comprehensive sexuality education. We highlight the significance of examining connections between abstinence and comprehensive approaches in future studies.