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Premarital Abstinence Pledges Ineffective, Study Finds

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aps

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Teenagers who pledge to remain virgins until marriage are just as likely to have premarital sex as those who do not promise abstinence and are significantly less likely to use condoms and other forms of birth control when they do, according to a study released today.

The new analysis of data from a large federal survey found that more than half of youths became sexually active before marriage regardless of whether they had taken a "virginity pledge," but that the percentage who took precautions against pregnancy or sexually transmitted diseases was 10 points lower for pledgers than for non-pledgers.

"Taking a pledge doesn't seem to make any difference at all in any sexual behavior," said Janet E. Rosenbaum of the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, whose report appears in the January issue of the journal Pediatrics. "But it does seem to make a difference in condom use and other forms of birth control that is quite striking."


Premarital Abstinence Pledges Ineffective, Study Finds
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I would love to see the Obama Administration STOP funding the abstinence program. It doesn't work. Let's make this about teaching children about sexually transmitted diseases and preventing pregnancy.
 
aps said:
I would love to see the Obama Administration STOP funding the abstinence program. It doesn't work. Let's make this about teaching children about sexually transmitted diseases and preventing pregnancy.
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Does the federal government fund it? I thought it was the states.

States must teach abstinenece-only differently. My community is two-tier as well as absolutely voluntary, and the only money funding it is stemmed from the local sales tax. so, I don't really know what all the big fuss is about.
 
DarkWizard12 said:
Does the federal government fund it? I thought it was the states.

States must teach abstinenece-only differently. My community is two-tier as well as absolutely voluntary, and the only money funding it is stemmed from the local sales tax. so, I don't really know what all the big fuss is about.
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According to the article:

The findings are reigniting the debate about the effectiveness of abstinence-focused sexual education just as Congress and the new Obama administration are about to reconsider the more than $176 million in annual funding for such programs.
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So our federal tax dollars are going towards this worthless program.
 
aps said:
According to the article:



So our federal tax dollars are going towards this worthless program.
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Well, if the government wants to throw 176,000,000 away, they could have just given it all to me. :roll:

Congress is screwing up everything. Can't they see that Sex is a community, almost an individual, issue? Oh yea, thats right, they can't. :doh
 
Rosenbaum was on the TODAY show this morning. One thing she said that I complete agree with that isn't in the article is that, and I'm paraphrasing, "America needs to remove itself from the idea that education about sex equates to permission to have sex."

Not educating teenagers on safe sexual practices and the risks of having sex only hurts them.
 
Big surprise........ :roll:

Cant fight nature...
 
It costs 176 million dollars a year to say "don't have sex"?

Pathetic.
 
In Other News: "Are you 18?" security measures for pornography found to be ineffective!

Come back next week for another "I coulda told you for $10" study.
 
Gibberish said:
Rosenbaum was on the TODAY show this morning. One thing she said that I complete agree with that isn't in the article is that, and I'm paraphrasing, "America needs to remove itself from the idea that education about sex equates to permission to have sex."

Not educating teenagers on safe sexual practices and the risks of having sex only hurts them.
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Rosenbaum needs to get real and get back in touch. Education about sex without laying down standards does equate to permission to have sex for this current generation. You can't have one side without including the other, its going to require a two tier approach.

The idea that abstinence encouragement alone is going to cut down on teen pregnancies and/or disease transferal is crazy. But at the same time basic sex education alone isn't going to be anymore effective. Solving the problem with irresponsable teen sex practices are going to require a more comprehensive program involving parental support than just basic education.

Showing VD pictures or the proper way to roll on a condom isn't going to teach a teen male that the amount of "poon" he's getting doesn't make him a man, nor does it show barely teenage females that "putting out" shouldn't be a requirement for a relationship at the age of 13.

The money being spent needs to be halted and the until the program gets overhauled.
 
I guess, in their mind, they are all spending 1 trillion there, a trillion here, so obviously, 176 million should be nothing for the taxpayer. :roll:

As for me though, its not really the fact that the program that they are funding is a failure(i think if it was just reformed to be more "flexible", it will might some things), rather, its the fact that this a state issue. If Texas wants abstinence-only education, then let Texas fund it. If massachusetts wants "sex-only" education, then by george let mass fund it. Everyone wins this way.
 
aps said:
I would love to see the Obama Administration STOP funding the abstinence program. It doesn't work. Let's make this about teaching children about sexually transmitted diseases and preventing pregnancy.
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Not necessarily disagreeing or agreeing with you. I don't think abstinence only is the answer since kids are a little naive to begin with, but since they aren't stupid maybe teaching abstinence because of the consequences could work, it's just to get a less condescending tone to the classes. Sex ed sucked when I was in school, it needs to actually be worth something.
 
Keorythe said:
Rosenbaum needs to get real and get back in touch. Education about sex without laying down standards does equate to permission to have sex for this current generation. You can't have one side without including the other, its going to require a two tier approach.
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Who is not laying down standards? No one is saying abstience should not be taught. Only that despite any "decision groups" that exist on the subject of sex, all should have a full understanding of the subject.

You can't make intelligent decisions if you are ignorant on the topic.

Keorythe said:
The idea that abstinence encouragement alone is going to cut down on teen pregnancies and/or disease transferal is crazy. But at the same time basic sex education alone isn't going to be anymore effective. Solving the problem with irresponsable teen sex practices are going to require a more comprehensive program involving parental support than just basic education.

Showing VD pictures or the proper way to roll on a condom isn't going to teach a teen male that the amount of "poon" he's getting doesn't make him a man, nor does it show barely teenage females that "putting out" shouldn't be a requirement for a relationship at the age of 13.
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Showing VD pictures as part of a in depth sex-ed curriculum is going to help the teen male and female in their decision to have or not have sex.

Giving teens a ring and saying sex is evil will only affect a very small minority that truly believe in abstinence, whatever their reasons.

Keorythe said:
The money being spent needs to be halted and the until the program gets overhauled.
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So no education for teens is better then one that works only on small groups?

The problem with overhauling it is that the conservative religious right don't want their children learning about sex. They believe that teaching equates to permission. If they ignore the topic then it doesn't exist.
 
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Another area government should get out of.
Government shouldn't be teaching our children about sex.
 
Phoenix said:
Another area government should get out of.
Government shouldn't be teaching our children about sex.
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They aren't teaching them about sex. They are teaching them about non-sex. :mrgreen:
 
Where the hell does this money even go? In fact, could someone tell me what the hell an abstinence only sex-ed curriculum contains? Wouldn't the teacher just stand up in front of class and be like "sex is bad don't do it"? Seriously, what more is involved?
 
aps said:
I would love to see the Obama Administration STOP funding the abstinence program. It doesn't work. Let's make this about teaching children about sexually transmitted diseases and preventing pregnancy.
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Oh? Abstinence does not effectively stop the transmission of std's nor prevent unwanted pregnancies?

What was I thinking?
 
Khayembii Communique said:
Where the hell does this money even go? In fact, could someone tell me what the hell an abstinence only sex-ed curriculum contains? Wouldn't the teacher just stand up in front of class and be like "sex is bad don't do it"? Seriously, what more is involved?
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They could say, "And don't go out and buy condoms or any sort of birth control because that will assure you that you will have sex."

What do you think? ;)
 
Oh? Abstinence does not effectively stop the transmission of std's nor prevent unwanted pregnancies?

What was I thinking?
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I think you are missing the disconnect here.

Abstinence-only program =/= Kids practicing abstinence

They could say, "And don't go out and buy condoms or any sort of birth control because that will assure you that you will have sex."
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Ah, that's where the expense is then.:lol:
 
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JMak said:
Oh? Abstinence does not effectively stop the transmission of std's nor prevent unwanted pregnancies?

What was I thinking?
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Does abstinence only education prevent the above?
 
aps said:
So our federal tax dollars are going towards this worthless program.
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So are you being intellectually dishonest or are you just ignorant.

This WaPo report about a study says nothing about broader abstinence programs. It simply says that, "Teenagers who pledge to remain virgins until marriage are just as likely to have premarital sex as those who do not promise abstinence..."

That says nothing about the success or failure of abstinence programs. The WaPo article is extremely misleading when it reports, "The study is the latest in a series that have raised questions about programs that focus on encouraging abstinence until marriage, including those that specifically ask students to publicly declare their intention to remain virgins."

No, the study raises questions abut the effectiveness of abstinence-only pledges.

Class dismissed.
 
Khayembii Communique said:
I think you are missing the disconnect here.
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No. I'm not missing any disconnect here.

Abstinence-only program =/= Kids practicing abstinence
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Ya think?

You could say that I misinterpreted the OP's comments and mistook them as suggesting that abstinence doesn't prevent std transmission or unwanted pregnancies.

winston said:
Does abstinence only education prevent the above?
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Maybe, maybe not. Research is all over the place regarding the effectiveness of abstinence only programs. My issue here is the OP and others arguing that this study demonstrates that federal funding of abstinence education is a failure. It's not, at least not according to this study.
 
JMak said:
So are you being intellectually dishonest or are you just ignorant.

This WaPo report about a study says nothing about broader abstinence programs. It simply says that, "Teenagers who pledge to remain virgins until marriage are just as likely to have premarital sex as those who do not promise abstinence..."

That says nothing about the success or failure of abstinence programs. The WaPo article is extremely misleading when it reports, "The study is the latest in a series that have raised questions about programs that focus on encouraging abstinence until marriage, including those that specifically ask students to publicly declare their intention to remain virgins."

No, the study raises questions abut the effectiveness of abstinence-only pledges.

Class dismissed.
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Bristol Palin. I rest my case.
 
aps said:
Bristol Palin. I rest my case.
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I see. So you're being intellectually dishonest.

Understood.

And if that's your standard I guess you'll be arguing that all sex education programs have failed, right?

:roll:
 
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