Adolescent Engages in Sexual Intercourse

Anytime an adolescent engages in sexual intercourse, there is a risk of pregnancy or sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) (Moilanen, 2018). There would be a variety of factors or reasons why an adolescent chooses to engage in any kind of sexual activity; for example, because of the way their family is structured, peer pressure, or even their own personality (Moilanen, 2018). Some or all of these factors can contribute to an adolescent’s desire to engage in sexual activity, which can ultimately lead to unwanted pregnancies and/or STDs (Moilanen, 2018). According to Kirby, Crosby, Santelli, & DiClemente (2009), family is a very important component in an adolescent’s choice to engage in sexual activities. When an adolescent’s family members, like their mom, dad, or caregiver, aren’t very involved in their child’s life, the adolescent may not be getting all the information they need about sex and sexual activities (Kirby et al., 2009). Also, whenever an adolescent has a mother and/or father who had them when they were young teenagers, the adolescent may have the idea in their head that that’s the normal or right thing to do (Moilanen, 2018; Kirby et al., 2009).

There are some risk factors for adolescent sexual activity that you can’t control, like their gender, family structure, and race (Moilanen, 2018). However, there are some other risk factors that are more malleable and subject to change, like how the adolescent perceives themselves, who the adolescent hangs out with, if the adolescent experiences substance use/abuse, and if the adolescent uses birth control or other forms of contraceptive (Moilanen, 2018). It’s obvious that you can’t change a person’s gender, race, or family structure, but there are ways to inform adolescents about the risks associated to those different factors; for example, which gender or race is more likely to engage in adolescent sexual activity and how a person’s family structure can lead to early sexual risk taking (Moilanen, 2018; Kirby et al., 2009). The other risk factors mentioned earlier (self-perception, peer pressure, substance use/abuse, and contraceptive use) are just a few risk factors that can be influenced by intervention efforts (Moilanen, 2018; Kirby et al., 2009). These adolescent factors are able to be influenced by intervention or treatment because they involve aspects of the adolescent’s life that are subject to change at any time, unlike how they were raised and what sex they are (Moilanen, 2018; Kirby et al., 2009).

Stopping adolescent sexual activities before they even begin is the ideal course of preventative action (Moilanen, 2018; Kirby et al., 2009). Sex-education programs, usually based in the school system, are a preventative measure used to reach a large group of adolescents to give them information on the implications of sexual risk-taking and how to be safe (Kirby et al., 2009). Abstinence-only programs are a part of the sex-education programs that teach adolescents to refrain from having sex until marriage; however, this type of program doesn’t seem to be as effective as others (Kirby et al., 2009). Programs that teach adolescent’s the risks of sex, how to use contraceptives, and give information on STDs have shown to be more effective in preventing or delaying adolescent sexual activity (Kirby et al., 2009). These programs also give adolescents information on what kinds of behaviors may lead to sexual risk-taking, like substance use, delinquency, peer pressure, and other personal factors, and how to manage or eliminate them (Kirby et al., 2009). Sex-education programs are also helpful for those adolescents whose parent(s)/caregiver(s) might not give them all the information on sex they need (Kirby et al., 2009).

Thankfully, there are other family programs that adolescents and/or their families can attend to get information about how to effectively communicate and talk about safe sex in the household (Kirby et al., 2009). This type of program is an intervention effort, since the program is generally used after there is a problem in communicating safe sex in the family (Kirby et al., 2009). Family programs can focus on abstinence-only, STD information, contraceptive use, or any other matter relating to adolescent sexual activity; each family can choose what they want to better communicate with their children (Kirby et al., 2009). It may sometimes be hard to tell when these prevention or intervention programs are working properly, since some adolescents may not want to tell the truth about their sexual activity; however, studies have shown that there are significant decreases in adolescent pregnancy and STDs because of the use of these programs (Kirby et al., 2009). Giving adolescents the knowledge about safe sex, the proper way to use contraceptives, and where to seek help when needed is an important factor in determining an effective sex prevention or intervention program (Kirby et al., 2009).”

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