by Jim Brown
A recent university study confirms that early dating leads teens to sex. At the same time, there appears to be a slight counter-sexual revolution developing among America’s teenagers.
The survey conducted by Ohio State University found that steady dating between the ages 13 and 14 dramatically increases children’s chances of having sex by age 15. Glenn Stanton is senior research analyst for marriage and sexuality at Focus on the Family. He says the study findings are consistent with past data that show the earlier young people engage with the opposite sex romantically and without parental supervision, the higher the likelihood that those young people will engage in sexual activity before age 15.
“We know that when parents are involved in the life of the child in setting reasonable but firm standards on what's expected — and doing that lovingly and warmly — that children are most likely to respond,” Stanton says, “and that those children are most likely to avoid sexual intercourse until marriage, which we know is the best, healthiest model for young people to follow.”
The study also revealed that boys who have more female friends and preteens with older friends are more likely to lose their virginity. Meanwhile, Stanton says, there is a concerted effort among many young people to save sex for marriage and live a more chaste lifestyle.
“There are a growing number — it's not a significant number, by any means — of young people who are formulating a different sort of standard for themselves than what we've typically seen,” he says. “That standard is they're not wanting to engage in early sexual activity; they're wanting to save themselves, they're wanting something better for themselves than what they've seen among their peers — and oftentimes among their parents.”
Despite recent declines in teen pregnancy in the U.S., about 25% of 15-year-olds and more than 50% of 18-year-olds are sexually active.
(This article courtesy of Agape Press.)
