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Adolescent Sexuality - What's Got Us Talking?

Perhaps you have recently seen one of Hollywood's latest blockbusters (and Oscar nominees) , Juno, a film touching heavily on the subject of teenage pregency. Or maybe you have been exposed to the media hoopla surrounding 16-year-old actress Jamie Lynn Spears (yes, Britney's little sis!), who recently announced her pregnancy. Either way, everyone seems to be talking about teenage sex these days...

And with good reason. For so long, and in socities all over the world, the issue of adolescent love and sexuality has been hushed up, shut out, deemed taboo, inappropriate, x-rated....the list of violations goes on for miles.

But, and there is a but, is keeping our lips sealed (pun intended!) the best way to approach the subject? It certainly doesn't look that way based on research and facts. In reality, it has left conservative countries like the United States with an abundance of unwanted pregnancies and cases of early motherhood.

In her research, sociology professor Amy Schalet (UMASS-Amherst) looked at how parents of teenagers in the United States think and communicate about sexuality in comparison with parents of youngsters in the Netherlands. Schalet found that Dutch parents and teens believe that youth can experience love, can be in love, and that love is an important prerequisite to sexual activity. The American parents, conversly, are skeptical about the concept of teenage love and sexuality and prefer not to discuss it with their children.

The result? Schalet's research found that the age of first sex is higher and the rates of unwanted pregnancy and STDs are lower among Dutch versus American youth.

To read more on the subject, click here.

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