How Young Adults Learned About Sexual Health

Quality sexual health education is a significant influence on how decisions are made throughout one’s life. In order to make safe and healthy choices, like wearing condoms, getting tested for sexually transmitted infections, and being prepared for puberty, quality sexual health education is needed. This qualitative study at the University of Pittsburgh involved interviews with a total of 11 people, nine females and two males. All of the interviewees were college educated and ranged in age from 21 to 25 years old. Understanding the sources of people’s sexual health education is important because it can provide valuable insights into the effectiveness of current sexual health education practices, parental involvement, and media influence, and how these can be improved. Looking retrospectively at how young adults have received their sexual health education provides a critical look at how their knowledge has influenced their lives to this point, and what they now know on the subject. Several public health relevant themes emerged in this study; sexual health education is needed and wanted earlier in life, should be provided in a realistic way, and should include parental involvement. Inaccurate or inadequate sexual health education can lead to being unprepared for puberty, ignoring symptoms of sexually transmitted infections, and using contraceptives incorrectly. When people are provided with correct, accurate and comprehensive sexual health information they can make better decisions, like being prepared for puberty, getting tested for sexually transmitted infections, and using contraceptives correctly