Over ninety percent of parents want teens to abstain from sexual activity until they have at least finished high school. Teens who abstain from sexual activity have substantially improved life outcomes. For example, teens who are abstinent in high school are almost twice as likely to attend and graduate from college when compared sexually active teens from identical social backgrounds.
Young people today are awash in a popular culture promoting promiscuity and casual sex. Abstinence education programs are one of the few alternative voices. Abstinence education programs are effective in reducing sexual activity against enormous pop culture pressures.
Alternative comprehensive sex education programs disparage abstinence and teach that casual sex among teenagers is acceptable and desirable.
Issues 2012 provides candidates for elected office the ability to quickly identify the key issues of the day and present clear policy recommendations, supported by facts, for addressing them. Read More.
Teen sexual activity is costly, not just for teens, but also for society. Teens who engage in sexual activity risk a host of negative outcomes including STD infection, emotional and psychological harm, and out-of-wedlock childbearing Read More.
Debates about sex education have focused on two different approaches: "safe sex" courses, which encourage teens to use contraceptives, especially condoms, when having sex, and abstinence education, which encourages teens to delay sexual activity. Read More.
Sexual activity in the teen years is linked to a number of important social concerns, including sexually-transmitted diseases, teenage pregnancy, out-of-wedlock childbirth, and depression. Read More.
Abstract: The principles of sexual health education are not based on the hard sciences. Sex education is animated by a specific vision of how society must change, and because of this, sex ed curricula omit critical biological truths and endorse high-risk behaviors. The priority…
Parents can find plenty of dismaying news in the latest government reports on the risky behavior and attitudes of American youth. A recent finding that one of every five teenagers has taken prescription drugs without a doctor's order, for instance, drew appropriate attention. But the trends in risky…
"As flies to wanton boys are we to the gods; they kill us for their sport." So says Shakespeare's desperate and deceived Gloucester in "King Lear."…
Teen sexual activity remains a widespread problem confronting the nation. Each year, some 2.6 million teenagers become sexually active--a rate of 7,000 teens per day. Among high school students, nearly half report having engaged in sexual activity, and one-third are currently active. Sexual activity during teenage years…
Abstract: Teen sexual activity is costly, not just for teens, but also for society. Teens who engage in sexual activity risk a host of negative outcomes including STD infection, emotional and psychological harm, and out-of-wedlock childbearing. Genuine abstinence education is therefore crucial to the physical and psycho-emotional well-being of the…
A group that thinks a Super Bowl ad celebrating Tim Tebow's life is bad news for women might be a little out of touch with what women really want. That helps explain why the National Organization for Women and other feminist groups have vehemently opposed abstinence…
He invited drug addicts into his home. So reads the obituary of Pastor Freddie Garcia, one of the great lights that left us in 2009 after nearly 40 years of ministry showing others the way. In the 1960s, Garcia was a heroin…
As Congress wraps up its final business for the year, there are at least a dozen detrimental policies included in the omnibus spending bill recently signed into law by the President. Taken as a whole, these policies devalue human life, weaken civil society, and undermine the family. Unfortunately,…
Much of what is being taught to our young girls and boys in sex-education classes is too graphic and vulgar to be quoted in the newspaper. For that, you can blame Planned Parenthood, Advocates for Youth, and the Sexuality Information and Education Council of the United States (SIECUS). The content of sex-education programs is dominated by…
The President's budget for Fiscal Year 2010 would eliminate abstinence education funding. The Obama Administration has instead requested the creation of yet another comprehensive sex education program, the "Teen Pregnancy Prevention" program. The House of Representatives has included this request in their annual appropriations bill that is now moving…
In April, the Senate will vote on reauthorization of welfare reform. The Senate welfare reform legislation will include the reauthorization of the federal government's main education program. Despite the overwhelming popularity of education, some groups seek to divert funds away from and into "safe sex" programs. These efforts to redirect funds are usually…
Teenage sexual activity is a major problem confronting the nation and has led to a rising incidence of sexually transmitted diseases (STDs), emotional and psychological injuries, and out-of-wedlock childbearing. Abstinence education programs for youth have…
Introduction There is strong and widespread support of teaching sexual abstinence to American teens. Over 90 percent of parents, at a minimum, want teens to be taught to abstain from sexual activity…
Early this year, Congress will work to renew welfare reform by reauthorizing the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) program. As part of this process, Congress will also seek to reauthorize the Title V abstinence education program that was created, along with TANF, in the original 1996 welfare reform act, the Personal…
Debates about sex education have focused on two different approaches: "safe sex" courses, which encourage teens to use contraceptives, especially condoms, when having sex, and abstinence education, which encourages teens to delay sexual activity. In recent years, advocacy groups such as SIECUS (the Sex Information and education Council of the…
Early initiation of sexual activity and higher numbers of non-marital sex partners are linked in turn to a wide variety of negative life outcomes, including increased rates of infection with sexually transmitted diseases, increased rates of out-of-wedlock pregnancy and birth, increased single parenthood, decreased marital stability, increased maternal and child poverty, increased abortion, increased depression, and…
This paper provides a systematic review of the research literature examining the relationship between family structure and adolescent sexual activity. Adolescents from intact family structures tend to delay sexual initiation until a significantly older age than their peers from non-intact family backgrounds. Adolescents from intact families are less likely to have ever had sexual intercourse, have…
The harmful effects of early sexual activity are well documented. They include sexually transmitted diseases, teen pregnancy, and out-of-wedlock childbearing. As well, teen sexual activity is linked to emotional problems, such as depression, and increased risk of suicide. Abstinence education programs, which encourage teens to delay the onset of sexual activity, are effective in curbing…
The statistics on teen sexuality in the United States are troubling. About 7 percent of high school students report having had sex before the age of 13. By ninth grade, one-third of high school students have engaged in sexual activity, and by 12th grade, two-thirds.[1] Yet the…
Congress is about to make a bad decision on Medicaid that will affect taxpayers and families alike. The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), which is responsible for administering the Medicaid program, has issued seven rules designed to curb certain Medicaid fraud and abuses. Congress is poised to block these rules and thus allow…
Teen sexual activity remains a widespread problem confronting the nation. Each year, some 2.6 million teenagers become sexually active-a rate of 7,000 teens per day. Among high school students, nearly half report having engaged in sexual activity, and one-third are currently active. Sexual activity during teenage years poses serious health risks for youths and has long-term…
Teen sexual activity remains a widespread problem confronting the nation. Each year, some 2.6 million teenagers become sexually active—a rate of 7,000 teens per day.[1] Among high school students, nearly half report having engaged in sexual activity, and one-third are currently active.[2] Sexual…
In their effort to override the President's veto of legislation to expand the State Children's Health Insurance Program (SCHIP), Members of Congress have added to the "compromise" legislation (H.R. 3963) two little noticed provisions that would undermine parents' right to consent to--or even know about--medical care given to their children through school-based health clinics. Such "medical…
Statistics released today about American teens’ sexual behavior belie the popular portrayal of American youth as...…
Recently, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) announced the winners of $110 million worth of grant money...…
Abstinence education is back in the headlines, prompted by a new study that shows such intervention can reduce teen...…
Yesterday, a new study was released showing that abstinence education programs were effective in reducing teen sexual...…
A new study concludes that abstinence-only education had a significant and long-term effect in reducing teen sexual...…
As Congress wraps up its final business for the year, there are at least a dozen detrimental policies included in the...…
The FY10 Labor-HHS Appropriations bill heads to the House floor today. The Appropriations Committee approved this annual...…
Policy Analyst
Senior Research Fellow