Sex education, is it working? Why not ask the experts!

In 2005 the federal government spent approximately $186 million dollars on abstinence-until-marriage programs, double of what was spent in 2001 (YRBS). This approach leaves young people ill informed about how to use or even which contraception methods are available to them (Guttmacher Institute, 2001) . As a result of their lack of preparation and limited knowledge, many adolescents and college students underestimate the risk of their sexual behaviors. Therefore, they place themselves at higher risk for unintended pregnancy or contracting an STI when they decide to engage in sexual intercourse (Kaiser Family Foundation, 2001;Guttmacher Institute, 2001; Dailard, 2001). To date, there have been few qualitative studies that have evaluated sex education and its effect on future sexual behaviors. Therefore the purpose of this study was to begin to evaluate the current approaches to sex education. A qualitative social-constructivist approach was utilized to understand how sex education experiences may have failed female adolescents and young adults. The date collection process included one-on-one interviews and one follow-up focus group. The nine participants were limited to unmarried female undergraduate students between the ages of 18 and 24. The results indicated that young women received mixed messages from formal school education, peer gossip and the media, which cause confusion in their future sexual decisions and negotiations. This study represents one of the few qualitative studies that have investigated how sex education effects the sexual decision making and negotiation of young women. Additional research is needed to further elucidate this issue.