Abstinence-Only Education Inadequate, Says Study

Abstinence-only education has little to no impact on whether teens have sex or how many sexual partners they have, according to a new government study.

In 2005 and 2006, researchers surveyed 1,209 teens who had completed abstinence-only programs in rural and urban areas and 848 teens in the same communities who had not. The study found that teens in both groups reported practically identical sexual behavior.

Teens who took abstinence-only classes:

• were just as likely as teens in the other group to say they'd chosen not to be sexually active — about half remained abstinent in both groups
• had the same number of sexual partners as the teens who didn't take the classes — about a quarter said they'd had three or more partners and 27% had had one or two
• started having sex, on average, around the same age as those in the other group — 14.9 years old
• had unprotected sex just as often — 21% in both groups said they sometimes or never used a condom

The study, conducted by the nonpartisan research group Mathematica Policy Research, Inc., and funded by the federal government, focused on four programs that lasted from 1 to 4 years. On average, the kids were 11 to 12 years old when they entered the programs.

It should be noted that the abstinence education programs involved in the study represent just a few of the first programs established. Hundreds now are offered nationwide. None of the programs studied extended into the later high school years, when teens are more sexually active.

The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) recommends sex-education programs that address abstinence and birth control. Research has shown that giving kids information about both options doesn't increase their sexual activity. For sexually active teens it promotes and increases the proper use of birth control methods.