Layout 1

Chapter 4

Teen Sexual Activity.Suchwidespread

culturalacceptanceof premaritalsexhas

producedateenculturewhichpromotes

sexualpromiscuity.Accordingtothe

GuttmacherInstitute(2006),46%of

teenagersintheUnitedStates,ages15to19,

havehadsexatleastonce,mostwith

someonewithinthreeyearsof theirownage

(GuttmacherInstitute,2006).Figure4.1

givesthefrequencyof teensexualbehavior

byage.Whilesexintheearlyteensis

relativelylow,sexualactivityincreaseswith

age.Theaverageagethatteenagersfirst

experiencesexis17yearsold(Guttmacher

Institute,2006).

Whilethosenumbersandfiguresmay

appearbleak,theyactuallyrepresenta

downwardtrendof teensexualactivity

whichplateauedin2007(Stein,2007).In

1993,56%of highschoolboysand50%of

highschoolgirlsreportedatleastonesexual

46% of teenagers report having had sex at least once.

Teen Sexual Activity

Percentageof malesandfemaleswhohavehadsexualintercoursebetweentheagesof 14and19,2002

Source:Alan Guttmacher Institute 2006

Figure 4.1

Females

100

% who have had intercourse, 2002

80

60

40

20

0

14 15 16 17 18 19

AGE

Males

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