Parent-child Communication about Sex

Methodology

There are several ways that parent-child communication about sex has been assessed. Researchers have examined the frequency of sexual discussions, the number and types of topics discussed, the perceived quality of communication, the comfort level of the participants, and the nature and pattern of the discussions. Typically, this is done in the form of a questionnaire administered to the parents and/or the children, but some researchers have videotaped family sexual discussions or have interviewed family members.

There is generally little correspondence between parents' and children's reports of how much family sexual discussion has occurred. In addition, children are often unaware that their parents disapprove of premarital sex, and parents are often unaware that their children have already engaged in sexual activity. This suggests that family members are not necessarily reliable sources of information about each others' behavior.

Predictors of Parent-Child Sexual Communication

There is virtually no research on parent-child communication with children less than 10 years of age about sex. There are, however, many studies of parent-child communication with adolescents, yielding some consistent findings as well as some confusion. It is clear that many parents do not discuss sexuality with their children. Parents are more likely to discuss sex with their daughters than with their sons, and mothers are more likely to engage in such conversations with sons and daughters than are fathers.

Parents are more likely to talk to their children about sex if they have higher levels of general communication with their child, a greater belief that other teens are engaging in sexual activity, and greater concerns about adolescent sexuality. Mothers who report more sexual discussion with their children tend to have more open general family communication, have greater feelings of competence in sexual communication, and are more likely to have had sexual discussions with their own mothers. Fathers who communicate with their children about sex are also more likely to be open in general family communication, to have discussed sexuality with their own fathers, and to have more years of formal education.

There are some cultural differences with regard to the extent of parent-child communication about sexuality. Parents who are White or African American are more likely to discuss sexuality with their adolescent children than are parents who are Hispanic or Asian. African-American families tend to discuss [Page 1198]sexuality at an earlier age and are more likely to discuss “sensitive” topics than White families.

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