@CalamityJane,
Quote:So it does seem that 14 % of teens practice abstinence from
vaginal intercourse and opt for other sexual pleasures.
No, that's not really a correct interpretation of the data. 14% of
the decline in the pregnancy rate through 2005 was attributable to abstinence, but that doesn't really tell you what percentage of the population is remaining abstinent--or reporting that they have no sexual experience.
To double check my thinking on that score, I looked at the original study (Santelli et al., 2007) that the 14% figure in that article came from because it seemed to differ too widely from the percentage that the CDC reported. And, sure enough, Santelli et al., reported that their data regarding declining sexual experience were identical to those of the CDC--with the CDC reporting sexual experience in only 45.9% of the female teen population they surveyed in 2007 (and in the latest CDC study, which included data through 2010, only 43% reported being sexually experienced, showing a slight continued decline).
Quote:Our findings on trends in sexual activity may seem at odds with previous reports about declining sexual involvement among young women reported from the YRBS [13]. They are not. In published reports from the CDC, sexual experience reported in the YRBS declined from 1991 to 2007 (50.8% to 45.9%,
p<.05)...Our data in Figure 1 for sexual activity among all women are identical to those in the CDC report.
http://gutmacher.org/pubs/journals/reprints/Behavioral_Risk_Santelli_JAH.pdf
So I suspect that the CDC figures--which reported that only 43% of the girls, and 42% of the boys, between the ages of 15-19, say that they have had sexual intercourse at least once--are much likelier to be closer to reality. And "closer to reality" may be as close as we can get because all of these surveys rely on self reports--so validity of the data depends on how honest or open the teens responding may be. And that problem is common to
all the studies that measure sexual activity.
Even among those who might be sexually active, a high percentage are not reporting engaging in vaginal sexual intercourse within the past year.
Quote:•At any given point in time, most U.S. adolescents are not engaging in partnered sexual behavior. While 40% of 17 year-old males reported vaginal intercourse in the past year, only 27% reported the same in the past 90 days. (NSSHB, 2010)
•Solo masturbation is the most prevalent teenage sexual activity, and reported recent solo masturbation is high at 43% of males and 37% of females. (NSSHB, 2010)
•Among men aged 15-19 years, 45.1% reported no partners in the last 12 months, 29.7% reported one partner of the opposite sex in the last 12 months, and 21.8% reported two or more partners of the opposite sex in the previous year. (Mosher, Chandra, & Jones, 2005)
•Among women aged 15-19 years, 42.9% reported no partners in the last 12 months, 30.5% reported one partner of the opposite sex in the last 12 months, and 16.8% reported two or more partners of the opposite sex in the previous year. (Mosher, Chandra, & Jones, 2005)
http://www.kinseyinstitute.org/resources/FAQ.html#teensex
I think the best conclusion we can draw is that a much much higher percentage of teens than we might think, are not engaging in sexual activity involving vaginal intercourse. That doesn't mean they are all sexually inexperienced in that regard for the same reasons--some might simply lack available partners, or desirable partners, some might be fearful of unwanted pregnancies or STDs, while, for others, abstinence might be a choice based on religious or moral values. And many are engaging in other types of sexual activity.
We also have to realize the extremely diverse populations that most of these studies survey in terms of ethnicity, race, socio-economic level, religious affiiation, geographical location, etc.--so the findings might not seem to jive with one's own first-hand or anecdotal experience because they are also referencing a much wider range of the teen population.
So, our 17 year old OP may not be that atypical in terms of her virginal status, although the issue of whether or not to engage in vaginal intercourse is clearly something she is wrestling with at this time. And it remains to be seen whether she will remain a virgin until she marries.
I'm not sure the absolute numbers on abstinence, or sexual inexperience, matter at all, and most of the large scale reputable studies on teen sexual activity are more focused on teen pregnancy risk and pregnancy rates than anything else because those are the important public health issues. And, as long as the pregnancy rates are down, and better methods of contraception are being used, that's great news. But now we have to make sure that more teens have unrestricted access to those contraceptive methods, and to services provided at places like Planned Parenthood--the states that restrict access, by requiring things like parental consent, are the ones with higher pregnancy rates.
