California Family Minute

The "National Survey of Adolescents and their Parents: Attitudes and Opinions About Sex and Abstinence," undertaken by the Administration for Children and Families (ACF), a branch of the HHS, questioned 1,000 adolescents and their “most knowledgeable” parent about parent/youth attitudes and communication on the issues of sex and abstinence. While the American Public Health Association (APHA) highlighted the study on its Website and featured it at several professional conferences, the full results were not released.

Dr. Lisa LaRue, a researcher specializing in adolescent behavior, was intrigued and requested the full report; she was denied access. She then filed a Freedom of Information Act request, which was also denied. With national news and public pressure, the full report was posted to the HHS Website on Monday.

In addition to finding that strong majorities of parents and youth value abstinence until marriage, the study determined that parental attitudes were more important than parent communication in influencing their children. And, while parental and peer communications were more effective than messages from classes or programs, exposure to abstinence programs increased the likelihood of conversations with their parents or peers. Parents also supported multiple message sources, with a majority favoring abstinence messages coming from churches, doctors’ offices, schools, and community organizations. 

Public policy debates in ensuing years have raged with competition for elusive sex-education dollars.  This year’s battle was particularly nasty, as the Obama administration and Congress attempted to erase all abstinence funding; two million students and 176 abstinence programs nationwide are set to lose federal funding for their abstinence programs next month. 

Was the pro-abstinence data stonewalled in an effort to hide important information from Congress and policy makers? 
Dr. LaRue, the researcher who first requested and was denied the data, asked, “Is this valuable process being suppressed by those who wish to repress American values in an effort to exert control over sex education offered in the United States?” Valerie Huber, executive director of the Washington, D.C.-based National Abstinence Education Association, has called for a reinstatement of abstinence funding and said, “We are greatly concerned that the sex education policy being implemented by this administration does not reflect the values of what most parents and teens clearly want.” If we are really interested in preventing teen pregnancy and sexually transmitted disease, shouldn’t we examine all evidence – not just what supports one position? The release of this report provides a compelling starting point to consider what works for teens, is supported by parents and reflects the values of our nation.

• National Abstinence Education Association
• “HHS Yields to Public Pressure, Releases Abstinence Study,” CitizenLink
• Abstinence Education, Citizenlink
• Abstinence Policy, Focus on the Family