The Determinants of Sexual Intercourse Before Age 16 Years Among Rural Jamaican Adolescents

Individual and family factors have been hypothesized to influence adolescent sexual behavior, but the extent to which this is true for adolescents in Jamaica as a whole and for those in rural areas in particular, has not been well studied. The objective of this study was to identify individual and f...

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Main Authors: Olaniyi J. Ekundayo, Joana Dodson-Stallworth, Michele Roofe, Inmaculada B. Aban, Laura H. Bachmann, Mirjam C. Kempf, John Ehiri, Pauline E. Jolly
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Hindawi Limited 2007-01-01
Series:The Scientific World Journal
Online Access:http://dx.doi.org/10.1100/tsw.2007.94
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spelling doaj-e145e4d3c6cf40da8527538c956c39632020-11-25T01:00:16ZengHindawi LimitedThe Scientific World Journal1537-744X2007-01-01749350310.1100/tsw.2007.94The Determinants of Sexual Intercourse Before Age 16 Years Among Rural Jamaican AdolescentsOlaniyi J. Ekundayo0Joana Dodson-Stallworth1Michele Roofe2Inmaculada B. Aban3Laura H. Bachmann4Mirjam C. Kempf5John Ehiri6Pauline E. Jolly7Department of Epidemiology, School of Public Health, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, AL, USADivision of HIV/AIDS Prevention, National Center for HIV, STD, and TB Prevention Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, GA, USANorth East Regional Health Authority Ocho Rios, St Ann, JamaicaDepartment of Biostatistics, School of Public Health, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, USASchool of Medicine, Division of Infectious Diseases and School of Public Health, Department of Epidemiology, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, USADepartment of Epidemiology, School of Public Health, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, AL, USADepartment of Maternal and Child Health, School of Public Health, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, USADepartment of Epidemiology, School of Public Health, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, AL, USAIndividual and family factors have been hypothesized to influence adolescent sexual behavior, but the extent to which this is true for adolescents in Jamaica as a whole and for those in rural areas in particular, has not been well studied. The objective of this study was to identify individual and family factors associated with initiation of sexual activity before the age of 16 among rural adolescents in Jamaica. We analyzed data for 469 sexually experienced adolescents attending public high schools in the rural parish of Hanover. Multivariate logistic regression was used to predict independent influences of these factors. The mean age at sexual debut was 11 years for boys and 15 years for girls. Early adolescent sexual activity was associated with liberal attitudes about negative sexual outcomes (OR = 1.96, 95%CI = 1.34-2.87) and first sexual partner not being a steady boyfriend or girlfriend (OR = 4.19, 95%CI = 1.62-10.84). Female gender (OR = 0.16, 95%CI = 0.07-0.36) and older age at time of survey were protective (OR = 0.40, 95%CI = 0.32-0.52). Girls who were early starters were more likely to have been initiated by partners who were not steady boyfriends. They also reported liberal attitude towards negative sexual outcomes. Boys were mainly influenced by liberal attitude towards negative sexual outcomes. Being older was protective for both genders. Considering the high rates of HIV and adolescent pregnancy in this population, reproductive health programs that attempt to delay age at first sex should begin early in primary school before adolescents become sexually active.http://dx.doi.org/10.1100/tsw.2007.94
collection DOAJ
language English
format Article
sources DOAJ
author Olaniyi J. Ekundayo
Joana Dodson-Stallworth
Michele Roofe
Inmaculada B. Aban
Laura H. Bachmann
Mirjam C. Kempf
John Ehiri
Pauline E. Jolly
spellingShingle Olaniyi J. Ekundayo
Joana Dodson-Stallworth
Michele Roofe
Inmaculada B. Aban
Laura H. Bachmann
Mirjam C. Kempf
John Ehiri
Pauline E. Jolly
The Determinants of Sexual Intercourse Before Age 16 Years Among Rural Jamaican Adolescents
The Scientific World Journal
author_facet Olaniyi J. Ekundayo
Joana Dodson-Stallworth
Michele Roofe
Inmaculada B. Aban
Laura H. Bachmann
Mirjam C. Kempf
John Ehiri
Pauline E. Jolly
author_sort Olaniyi J. Ekundayo
title The Determinants of Sexual Intercourse Before Age 16 Years Among Rural Jamaican Adolescents
title_short The Determinants of Sexual Intercourse Before Age 16 Years Among Rural Jamaican Adolescents
title_full The Determinants of Sexual Intercourse Before Age 16 Years Among Rural Jamaican Adolescents
title_fullStr The Determinants of Sexual Intercourse Before Age 16 Years Among Rural Jamaican Adolescents
title_full_unstemmed The Determinants of Sexual Intercourse Before Age 16 Years Among Rural Jamaican Adolescents
title_sort determinants of sexual intercourse before age 16 years among rural jamaican adolescents
publisher Hindawi Limited
series The Scientific World Journal
issn 1537-744X
publishDate 2007-01-01
description Individual and family factors have been hypothesized to influence adolescent sexual behavior, but the extent to which this is true for adolescents in Jamaica as a whole and for those in rural areas in particular, has not been well studied. The objective of this study was to identify individual and family factors associated with initiation of sexual activity before the age of 16 among rural adolescents in Jamaica. We analyzed data for 469 sexually experienced adolescents attending public high schools in the rural parish of Hanover. Multivariate logistic regression was used to predict independent influences of these factors. The mean age at sexual debut was 11 years for boys and 15 years for girls. Early adolescent sexual activity was associated with liberal attitudes about negative sexual outcomes (OR = 1.96, 95%CI = 1.34-2.87) and first sexual partner not being a steady boyfriend or girlfriend (OR = 4.19, 95%CI = 1.62-10.84). Female gender (OR = 0.16, 95%CI = 0.07-0.36) and older age at time of survey were protective (OR = 0.40, 95%CI = 0.32-0.52). Girls who were early starters were more likely to have been initiated by partners who were not steady boyfriends. They also reported liberal attitude towards negative sexual outcomes. Boys were mainly influenced by liberal attitude towards negative sexual outcomes. Being older was protective for both genders. Considering the high rates of HIV and adolescent pregnancy in this population, reproductive health programs that attempt to delay age at first sex should begin early in primary school before adolescents become sexually active.
url http://dx.doi.org/10.1100/tsw.2007.94
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