Overview
“Abstinence education” (also known as abstinence-only, abstinence-plus, abstinence-only-until-marriage, community-based abstinence education, or sexual risk avoidance education) has, in recent years, become a specialized label, a technical term employed by educators, politicians, youth advocates, and public health workers in the USA. The label identifies a particular moral and educational agenda shaping what has been taught about human sexuality within USA public schools, since the 1980s. Approaches to teaching sexuality that lack the characteristics of this particular agenda (described in more detail, below) are titled, in turn, “comprehensive sexuality education.” Labeling or branding these educational efforts has facilitated their polarization, their validation as entrepreneurial efforts, and their entanglement in an ongoing, bitter dispute over the best strategies to teach children and adolescents about sexual health.
This entry – far from an exhaustive account of the...
References
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2009). Sexual and reproductive health of persons aged 10–24 years – United States, 2002–2007. Surveillance summaries. Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR), 58(SS-6), 1–62.
Doan, A. E., & Williams, J. C. (2008). The politics of virginity: Abstinence in sex education. Westport: Praeger.
Future of Sex Education Initiative. (2012). National Sexuality Education Standards: Core Content and Skills, K-12 [a special publication of the Journal of School Health]. Retrieved from http://www.futureofsexeducation.org/documents/josh-fose-standards-web.pdf
Goodson, P. (2010). Theory in health promotion research and practice: Thinking outside the box. Boston: Jones & Bartlett.
Goodson, P., Suther, S., Pruitt, B. E., & Wilson, K. (2003). Defining abstinence: Views of directors, instructors, and participants in abstinence-only-until-marriage programs in Texas. Journal of School Health, 73(3), 91–96.
Goodson, P., Buhi, E. R., & Dunsmore, S. C. (2006a). Self-esteem and adolescent sexual behaviors, attitudes, and intentions: A systematic review. Journal of Adolescent Health, 38(3), 310–319.
Goodson, P., Pruitt, B. E., Suther, S., Wilson, K., & Buhi, E. (2006b). Is abstinence education theory based? The underlying logic of abstinence education programs in Texas. Health Education & Behavior, 33(2), 252–271.
Guide to Community Preventive Services. (2009). Prevention of HIV/AIDS, other STIs and pregnancy: Abstinence education interventions. http://www.thecommunityguide.org/hiv/RRabstinence_ed.html
Hauser, D. (2008). Five years of abstinence-only-until-marriage education: Assessing the impact. Retrieved November 2009, from http://www.advocatesforyouth.org/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=623&Itemid=177
Mann, J., McIlhaney, J. S., & Stine, C. C. (2000). Building healthy futures: Tools for helping adolescents avoid or delay the onset of sexual activity. Austin: The Medical Institute for Sexual Health.
National Guidelines Task Force. (2004). Guidelines for comprehensive sexuality education: Kindergarten – 12th grade (3rd ed., 1st ed. 1991). New York: SIECUS.
Office of Adolescent Health. (2015). TPP resource center: Evidence-based programs: Searchable program database. Retrieved on March 1, 2017, from https://www.hhs.gov/ash/oah/oah-initiatives/teen_pregnancy/db/tpp-searchable.html#
Office of Adolescent Health. (2016). TPP resource center: Evidence-based programs. Retrieved on March 1, 2017, from https://www.hhs.gov/ash/oah/oah-initiatives/teen_pregnancy/db/
SIECUS. (2008). The Federal Government & abstinence-only-until-marriage programs. Retrieved September 2, 2009, from http://www.communityactionkit.org/index.cfm?pageId=892
SIECUS. (2009). Dueling amendments on sex education pass senate finance committee. http://www.siecus.org/index.cfm?fuseaction=Feature.showFeature&FeatureID=1802
SIECUS. (n.d.) A brief history of federal funding for sex education and related programs. Retrieved February 2, 2017, from http://www.siecus.org/index.cfm?fuseaction=page.viewpage&pageid=1341&
SIECUS. (n.d.) State by state decisions fiscal year 2011 edition: The Personal Responsibility Education Program and Title V abstinence-only program. Retrieved February 2, 2017, from http://www.siecus.org/index.cfm?fuseaction=Page.ViewPage&PageID=1272
The National Campaign to Prevent Teen and Unplanned Pregnancy. (n.d.) Federal funding streams dedicated to preventing teen and unplanned pregnancy at a glance. Retrieved February 2, 2017, from https://thenationalcampaign.org/sites/default/files/resource-primary-download/federal_funding_streams_dedicated_to_preventing_teen_and_unplanned_pregnancy_at_a_glance.pdf
Trenholm, C., Devaney, B., Fortson, K., Quay, L., Wheeler, J., & Clark, M. (2007). Impacts of four Title V, Section 510 Abstinence Education Programs. Mathematica Policy Research: Princeton.
United States Government Accountability Office. (2006). Abstinence education: Efforts to assess the accuracy and effectiveness of federally funded programs. Report to Congressional Requesters, Washington, DC: GAO-07-87.
Wilson, K. L., Smith, M. L., & Menn, M. (2013). Abstinence-related word associations and definitions of abstinence and virginity among Missouri high school freshmen. Journal of School Health, 83(11), 787–794.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2017 Springer International Publishing AG
About this entry
Cite this entry
Goodson, P., Walsh-Buhi, E.R., Reeves, S., Wilson, K.L. (2017). Abstinence Education. In: Levesque, R. (eds) Encyclopedia of Adolescence. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-32132-5_54-2
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-32132-5_54-2
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
Publisher Name: Springer, Cham
Print ISBN: 978-3-319-32132-5
Online ISBN: 978-3-319-32132-5
eBook Packages: Springer Reference Behavioral Science and PsychologyReference Module Humanities and Social SciencesReference Module Business, Economics and Social Sciences