Impact of a sex education workshop on mothers' responses to children's sexual questions and behaviors

Graduation date: 1983This study examined the impact of a Sex Education Workshop on mothers' responses to their children's sexual questions and behaviors Subjects included 88 mothers equally divided into experimental and control groups. Experimental and control groups consisted of an equal number of mothers from high and low socioeconomic levels. Furthermore, an equal number of mothers with preschool boys and girls were represented in the groups. A modified version of the Sex Education Questionnaire was used to assess mothers' plans, comfort level, ability and frequency in responding to their children's sexual questions and behaviors. A pre-/posttest design with a 1-month interval between testings was utilized. Data were analyzed using analysis of covariance, Bonferroni t̲, and chi-square. Findings obtained revealed that a 2-hour Sex Education Workshop focused on assisting mothers in responding to their preschool children's sexual questions and behaviors can lead them to (a) plan discussing a variety of age-appropriate sexual topics with their preschool children, (b) contribute to their abilities in responding to their preschool children's sexual curiosity, and (c) although less markedly, increase the frequency with which they discussed a variety of age-appropriate sexual topics with their preschool children. With respect to mothers' comfort level in responding to their children's sexual curiosity, the Sex Education Workshop appeared to have no significant impact. This may have been due to the relatively high comfort level scores of mothers prior to the experiment. However, questions can be raised about the adequacy of the comfort measure used in this study. In reference to the socioeconomic level and sex of child variables studied, results obtained provided some significant information regarding their main and interaction effects. However, examination of their effects revealed no clear-cut or consistent patterns. Their impact appeared at points to be related not only to each other but also to the variables of groups, types of sexual topics studied, and kinds of mothers' responses examined. The complex nature of these interactions made interpretation of data difficult. However, their significance cannot be overlooked in understanding the role of parents as sex educators of their children