teach sensible sex education and reduce unwanted
pregnancies and increased rates of sexually
transmitted infections than teach abstinence only.
Most sociologists believe that a comprehen-
sive sex education program should emphasize
abstinence as one of a set of options available to
young people and that the more information
young people have, the most likely they will make
the safest and most responsible choices. Parents
seem to agree. Only 7 percent of Americans say
that sex education should not be taught in
schools (Kaiser Family Foundation, 2004). The
majority of Americans, including evangelical
Christians, believe that sex education and birth
control should be taught (Table 10.1).
A similar debate has swirled for decades
around the politics of birth control and abortion.
Does the widespread availability of birth control
encourage heterosexuals to have sex because the
reproductive consequences can be minimized?
Or does birth control simply encourage hetero-
sexuals to have more responsiblesex, minimizing the health risks and possibilities of
unwanted pregnancy?
While moralists and political leaders take different positions, the sociological evi-
dence is clear that information about birth control and its availability does not increase
the amount of sex people have nor even the onset of sexual activity among young
people. However, national as well as global studies show that the widespread avail-
ability of birth control, especially when coupled with comprehensive sex education,
results in far lower rates of teen pregnancy and sexually transmitted infections (STIs)
(Alan Guttmacher Institute, 2001).
Many people have religious objections to certain types of birth control because
they believe that life begins at the moment an egg is fertilized, and some methods (such
as the intrauterine device or IUD, and the morning after pill) prevent the implanta-
tion of the fertilized egg on the uterine wall. They also oppose abortion because
abortion destroys a human embryo or fetus after implantation.
The opposition to abortion has transformed the
global politics of birth control. Currently, for example,
the United States refuses to fund any birth control
clinic or information service anywhere in the world if
the practitioners even mention abortion as a potential
option for women facing unwanted pregnancies. As
a result, most birth control information is now deliv-
ered through nonprofit organizations such as the
Planned Parenthood Federation and often funded by
private agencies, such as the Bill and Melinda Gates
Foundation, The Ford Foundation, and the John D.
and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation. Despite sig-
nificant political debate, there is little scientific argu-
ment that contradicts the proposition that increased
availability and use of birth control in the developing
countries would greatly enhance the standard of liv-
ing in those societies.342 CHAPTER 10SEXUALITYTABLE 10.1
Evangelical Christians and Sex Education Approval PercentagesTOPICPERCENTAGE SAYING IT
SHOULD NOT BE TAUGHT AT ALL
EVANGELICALS NONEVANGELICALS
That teens can obtain birth control
pills from family planning clinics
and doctors without permission
from a parent42 20Oral sex 41 20
Homosexuality and sexual
orientation37 18Masturbation 27 13
How to put on a condom 26 9
How to use and where to get
contraceptives21 7Don’t know/refused responses are not shown.
Source:National Public Radio, Kaiser Family Foundation, and Kennedy School for Public
and International Affairs, “Sex Education in America,” 2004.Family planning often empow-
ers women to control their
own lives. In the developing
world, family planning and
effective birth control (includ-
ing condoms) is also a major
strategy in reducing the
spread of HIV. n