Sexual Initiation, Parenting Practices and Acculturation in Hispanic Seventh Graders

Hispanic youths have high rates of sexually transmitted infections and pregnancies, yet few research studies have targeted multiple protective/risk factors for early sexual initiation in this group. This study examined two main factors—parenting practices and acculturation—on early sexual initiation among Hispanic middle school students in Texas. Using data from Hispanic seventh graders (n = 655) in 15 urban middle schools in southeast Texas, we examined the association between parenting practices (parental monitoring and parent-child communication about sexual health) and sexual initiation. To control for potential confounders, including students' acculturation level, multivariable logistic regression analyses were conducted. Individual tests were also conducted for acculturation-level by independent variables, outcome, and covariates. After controlling for age, gender, parent/guardian education, family structure, acculturation level (low, bicultural, high), and intervention status, the likelihood of ever having sex decreased 50% for every one-point increase in the parental monitoring score (AOR = 0.50; 95% CI = .34, .75) among Hispanic seventh graders. No association was found between ever having sex and parent-child communication scores (AOR = 1.29; 95% CI = .76, 2.18). Furthermore, analyses indicated parental monitoring differed significantly between acculturation levels, one-way ANOVA F(2, 652) = 5.07, p < .007. This finding was unrelated to the parental monitoring-initiation association in the multivariable model. Study findings suggest that parental monitoring delays sexual initiation, and differs by acculturation level, among Hispanic middle school students in Texas. These findings can inform school-based, parent-involved interventions designed to delay sexual initiation among Hispanic youth.