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Study Finds Teens from Religious Families Delay Sex Longer

Special Report - January 30, 2006
A family’s religious beliefs and activities affect when teenagers initiate sex, according to a new report from the National Campaign to Prevent Teen Pregnancy and Child Trends. The November 2005 research brief, entitled “The Association Between Parent, Family and Peer Religiosity and Teenagers’ Sexual Experience and Contraceptive Use,” analyzed data from the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth, a government survey of over 8,000 adolescents conducted in 1997. It found that teens in religious families have sex at later ages than teens in less religious families. According to the findings, teenagers are less likely to have sex before age 18 if: their parents have “strong” religious beliefs; their parents attend church frequently; and the teens regularly share in religious activities with their families (such as attending worship services, praying, and reading Scripture together).

In addition, the report found an association between delayed sexual activity and a teenager’s affiliation with certain religious denominations. For example, teens with Catholic parents (44 percent), mainstream Protestant parents (44 percent), and Conservative Protestant parents (43 percent) are slightly less likely than those with no religious affiliation (48 percent) to have sex before age 18. The bond betweens teens and their mothers also impacts when teens initiate sexual activity. According to the report, teens whose parents have strong religious beliefs and who have a strong relationship with their mothers are less likely to have sex before age 18 than teens whose parents have strong religious beliefs but who lack such a bond with their mothers.