Sexual Development

Question 1

goals and difficulties of studying sexual development

Answer 1

• Goals:
• • Learn what is normative/common
• • Reduce negative outcomes (ie. STIs, teen pregnancy, etc.)
• • Promote positive outcomes (ie. Self-esteem, make sexuality more positive aspect of adolescence)
• Difficulties:
• • Ethical/moral considerations (ie. Is it okay to ask teens about their sexual desires?)
• • Defining “sexual behaviours” (across cultures, contexts, etc.)

Question 2

Adolescence

Answer 2

• Begins at puberty (stage of development when body becomes capable of reproduction)
• • Usually begins around 11-13, ends around ages 16-18
• • Changes in hormones
• • Changes in body (secondary sex characteristics)
• • changes in cognition (better ability to understand sexual feelings)
• Sexual development occurs in this phase of life due to both physical and cognitive changes
• Ends at “adulthood”

Question 3

3 aspects of sexual development

Answer 3

• Sexual desires (ie. Attractions, interests)
• Sexual motives (ie. How you move from sexual desire to sexual behaviour -> what’s motivating you)
• Sexual behaviours (ie. The physical behaviours themselves)

Question 4

sexual desire

Answer 4

• Typically arises in pre-adolescence, but increases significantly with puberty
• Sex/gender differences occur
• • Ex. Males more likely to report feeling sexual arousal earlier on in life & experience more sexual arousal

Question 5

sexual motives

Answer 5

• Many different reasons/motives exist:
• Physical reasons (ie. feels good)
• Goal attainment (ie. getting social status, getting a relationship, revenge)
• Emotional expression (ie. Expressing love for someone else) -> most common reason
• Insecurity (ie. Boosting self-esteem)
• Curiosity & experimentation -> more specific to teens than adults; one of the most common reasons
• Emotion regulation (using sexual behaviour to distract yourself from other negative events) -> more specific to teens than adults

Question 6

sexual behaviour

Answer 6

• masturbation
• sexual activities with a partner
• sexual intercourse
• oral sex
• anal sex

Question 7

masturbation

Answer 7

• “autoerotic behaviour” (includes fantasies)
• Common in adolescence -> estimates vary between ~25-80%; reported more often by boys
• Difficult to measure -> teens usually lie about it (inaccurate self-report)

Question 8

sexual activities with a parner

Answer 8

• Developmental progression of partnered sexual behaviour typically goes from less intimate to more intimate
• Ex. Holding hands -> kissing -> touching over then under clothes -> sex

Question 9

sexual intercourse

Answer 9

• Rates vary: ~25-60% of teens report having engaged in it
• • A lot of issues with accuracy of self-report
• • Differences according to ethnic group, especially for males (ie. Highest amongst African-American teens; lowest amongst Asian-American teens)
• Mean/median age of first intercourse: ~16 for boys, ~17 for girls
• Rates vary depending on time of year (spike in summer; spike in December for romantic relationships only)
• Experience of first times vary -> girls more likely to report negative physical and emotional sensations

Question 10

oral sex

Answer 10

• In most studies, more common than intercourse
• Why?
• • Perceived by teens as less risky, less of a threat to their beliefs
• • Also perceived as less of a choice for teens in relationships -> expected behaviour

Question 11

anal sex

Answer 11

• Not measured by most studies
• ~4-20% of adolescents report having engaged in it
• In males, related to sexual orientation
• In females, related to power imbalance in sexual relationship (male partner has more power)

Question 12

influences on sexual behaviour

Answer 12

• family
• peers
• religion
• media

Question 13

influences: family

Answer 13

• Parental monitoring (more monitoring -> less sexual behaviour)
• Closeness with parents (more closeness with both mom and/or dad -> less sexual behaviour)
• Discussions about sexuality (more openness -> lower rates of risky sex); attitudes conveyed through discussions matter
• Household composition (divorced or single parents -> higher sexual behaviour; having older siblings (especially older sister who is teen parent) who have had sex -> higher sexual behaviour)
• Authoritative families -> less likely to have early/risky sex (vice versa for parent-adolescent conflict)

Question 14

influences: peers

Answer 14

Pressure to conform (higher rates when you believe most of your peers are having sex, even if it’s not true)

Question 15

influences: religion

Answer 15

Higher religiosity -> less sexual behaviour

Question 16

media

Answer 16

Teens who watch media with more sexual content -> more sexual behaviour

Question 17

effects of sexual behaviour

Answer 17

• Engaging in sexual behaviour during adolescence is not related to any psychological issues
• But very early sexual activity (before age 16) and risky sexual activity (ie. Unprotected sex, sex with multiple partners) may be associated with negative outcomes
• • Outcomes: poorer school engagement, higher drug/alcohol abuse, criminal activity, etc.

Question 18

sexual orientation

Answer 18

• The extent to which someone is oriented towards sexual activity with members of their own sex, the opposite sex, or both, or neither
• • May or may not align with sexual orientation identity (the label you identify with) and/or sexual behaviours
• Not the same as:
• • Sex-role behaviour (the extent to which someone acts in traditionally masculine or feminine ways)
• • Gender identities (the gender someone identifies as)

Question 19

same-sex desires and motives

Answer 19

• Not uncommon for adolescents to experience attraction to members of the same sex (6% of boys, 13% of girls)
• Different motivations:
• • Some teens engage in same-sex sexual behaviour because it’s part of their sexual orientation or identity, whereas others do it for experimentation/curiosity
• – Majority of teens who engage in same-sex sexual behaviour don’t identify as gay, lesbian, or bisexual

Question 20

same-sex sexual behaviour

Answer 20

• Among youth who identify as gay/lesbian/bisexual:
• • First sexual activity happens slightly earlier than rest of population (14-18 for females, 13-15 for males)
• Opposite/other-sex sexual activity is also common (ie. 80% of lesbians report having had sexual activity with men during their youth)
• More likely to engage in risky sexual behaviour

Question 21

outcomes & protective factors for gay, lesbian, and bisexual teens

Answer 21

• Increased risk of negative outcomes (ie. Fighting, suicide attempts, drug/alcohol use, sexual assault, threatened with weapons)
• Why?
• • Lack of support system
• • Bullying/harassment
• • Protective factors:
• • Supportive families
• • Supportive friends
• • Caring adults (teachers/coaches)
• • Connectedness to school; interest in school
• • Involvement in LGBT communities
• • Maybe spirituality, but typically not religiosity

Question 22

identity development/”coming out”: historically hypothesized process

Answer 22

• First awareness of same-sex attraction
• Period of testing and exploration (can be cognitive – ie. Doing research, and/or physical)
• Adopting a label (gay, lesbian, bisexual, queer, etc.)
• Disclosing sexual identity to others (usually ~16-19, usually to a friend or partner first, usually to mom before dad)
• Becoming involved in a same-sex romantic relationship
• Celebrating one’s sexual identity within a larger social context

Question 23

identity development/”coming out”: different trajectories

Answer 23

• “Sex First” group: engaging in same-sex sexual behaviour prior to identifying with a label
• “Label First” group: identifying with a label before engaging in same-sex sexual behaviour

Question 24

teen pregnancy

Answer 24

• In Canada today, about 3% of births are to teen mothers
• Why does it occur?
• • Lack of contraceptive use or incorrect contraceptive use
• • In few cases, desire for child

Question 25

antecedents (factors associated with increased teen pregnancy)

Answer 25

- Family factors (ie. Low SES, single or divorced parents, positive attitudes about teen pregnancy, etc.) - Community factors (ie. Low SES cities) - Peer factors (ie. Positive attitudes about teen pregnancy and negative attitudes school) - Partner factors (ie. Unsupportive of contraceptive use, girls with older partners) - Characteristics of teens (ie. More common amongst black & Latino teens compared to white & Asian teens; increased drug/alcohol use; sexual abuse; less knowledge of contraceptives)

Question 26

teen parenthood

Answer 26

- About 50% of teen pregnancies actually result in teen parenthood (other half are either aborted or spontaneously miscarried) - has risk factors for children, mothers, and fathers

Question 27

teen parenthood: risk factors for children

Answer 27

- Prematurity, LBW - School problems, delinquency - Psychological and social problems - Mothers' perceptions as more difficult

Question 28

teen parenthood: risk factors for mothers

Answer 28

- Depression, substance abuse, - Disruption in schooling & career (the more school disruption you have, the worse the outcomes are later); poor scholastic achievement is both a cause and consequence of early childbearing - Economic difficulties (poverty is both a cause and consequence of early childbearing)

Question 29

teen parenthood: risk factors for fathers

Answer 29

- More likely to drop out of school | - More likely to report mental health difficulties (ie. Anxiety, depression, substance abuse)

Question 30

teen pregnancy: preventative factors to reduce risks

Answer 30

- Return to school - Live with parents - Delay subsequent childbearing - Marriage (but only if stable)

Question 31

teen pregnancy: behaviours targeted by prevention programs

Answer 31

- Delay or prevent teens from having sex - Reduce frequency of sex - Increase use/correct use of contraception

Question 32

teen pregnancy: prevention programs

Answer 32

- abstinence only -> ineffective; reduces contraception use - comprehensive sex-ed programs - school condom/contraceptive availability -> no change in contraceptive use - service learning programs

Question 33

comprehensive sex-ed programs

Answer 33

- May also include more emotional/interpersonal aspects of sex in addition to its physical factors - Most effective programs have clear message and are long-lasting (ie. persist on a regular basis over months of years)

Question 34

service learning programs

Answer 34

- Not focusing solely on sexual behaviour, but focusing on things that are correlated with it -> ie. increasing self-esteem - - Ex. Teen Outreach Program -> teens meet up 1x/week and do community service project, talk about goals, etc.; 15% of program is about sex - Drastically reduces risk of teen pregnancy - - Why? Increases connections between peers & schools, gives teens autonomy

Question 35

teen pregnancy: support

Answer 35

- Social support (ie. Teen mom groups) - Schooling support (ie. Ability to take time off to breastfeed, etc.) - Economic support

Question 36

4 aspects of positive sexual development

Answer 36

- accepting your changing body - accepting your feelings of sexual arousal - understanding that sexual activity is voluntary - practicing safe sex

Question 37

sexual socialization

Answer 37

- the process of educating children about sexuality; varies by culture - - restrictive societies: adolescent sexuality discouraged; pressured to wait until adulthood/marriage - - semi-restrictive societies: adolescent sexuality frowned upon (esp. teen pregnancy); but not always formally prohibited (North America) - - permissive societies: sexual activity during childhood and adolescence not restrained

Question 38

historical changes in sexual activity

Answer 38

- most teenagers believe it's acceptable to have sex before marriage as long as it's in a loving relationship - sex is part of the typical adolescent experience - 1/3 of American 14-year-olds and 2/3 of 18-year-olds have had sex - proportion of teens who have sex before high school is rising - greatest decline at age of first intercourse is in females - today, less teens are having sex, but they're having it earlier

Question 39

hormones and sexual activity

Answer 39

- sexual interest influenced by surge in testosterone - in boys, higher androgens (like testosterone) = higher likelihood of being sexually active -> increase sex drive and change physical appearance to make them (typically) more attractive to girls - in girls, estrogen predicts sexual activity -> changes physical appearance and makes them more attractive to boys

Question 40

origins of homosexuality

Answer 40

- biological influences (ie. hormones) | - social influences (ie. family dynamics - cold/rejecting parents)

Question 41

sexual harassment, rape, and abuse during adolescence

Answer 41

- sexual harassment: more likely to occur at school than online, majority of teenagers report it - rape/date rape: more likely to occur when there is a large age difference between girl and male partner - includes sexual abuse: victims are disproportionately female and poor (but may be because they're most likely to report) -> leads to many negative outcomes like anxiety, depression, risky behaviour, etc.

Question 42

3 reasons why teens don't use contraception

Answer 42

- unplanned sexual activity - lack of access (ie. unaffordable, or otherwise unable to obtain it) - insufficient education (unsure when/how to use contraception)

Question 43

ways to improve teen conctraceptive use

Answer 43

- make contraceptives accessible to adolescence - have parents/schools provide sex ed early on, including educating about contraceptive use before teens become sexually active - parents should be more open about sex communication

Question 44

abortion

Answer 44

- more likely to be chosen by young women who are academically successful and ambitious, who come from middle- or upper-class families, and have educated parents -> perceive themselves as having more to lose by having the baby - women who choose to have abortions not psychologically harmed long-term -> actually better off than comparable women who give birth to child - post-abortion, they're more likely to use contraceptives