700 Word Draft: Let's talk about S.E.X."

We see it everywhere, on every episode of One Tree Hill, Jersey Shore, and Gossip Girl. We've heard about it, talked about, and younger and younger kids are doing it. Yes, let's talk about sex. It's a tiring topic, especially one to have with kids when they ask about it, and of course, even if they don't. With the internet, TV, music, and TV constantly adapting and getting more and more accessible (and sexual) it isn’t hard to blame it all for the recent boom in young kids getting involved with sex. Even then, is it the media pushing this sexual revolution in young teens? We have to ask ourselves key questions if we want to stop this epidemic: What is the cause? Why is it happening? And how do we stop and prevent it? There have been a number of suggestions that have been debated for decades. In the seventies, some said that health education courses in schools were the answer; now that we’ve got those, some say we need better ones. Some answer the problem with religion and spiritual practices. Some say parents need to monitor the media impact on kids, blocks on the internet and TV for example. And finally, some say we can’t stop kids from having sex, they say it’s inevitable. Those say we need to make getting the proper precautions easier and more available, giving out condoms in schools and introducing contraceptives. All of these theories can be properly tested and could work, depending on several factors. But, what most don’t realize is that this problem really hits home-literally. The problem can be solved with that one word: Home. Talking is the best way to educate kids about the precautions, the emotional factors, and the consequences of having sex at such a young age, or, for that matter, having sex in general. Having a good home life, good relationships, and good understanding of the emotions of a teenager are all the key elements of sexuality especially in the developing minds of teens. Showing care for kids, showing parental guidance, and talking extensively with kids about sex is the answer to preventing such young kids having intercourse.
To understand the problem, we have to dissect the cause. Breaking it down, we have to eliminate the double standard aspect that so often gets in the way when talking about sex. Let’s zoom in on both boy and girl separately. First, what are some causes that could explain why young girls are getting involved with sex so early? “Pathway to Early Coital Debut” introduces this great statistic on the matter, saying, “…a study of 13-year-old Canadian girls (Brendgen, Wanner, & Vitaro, 2007) found a negative relationship between self-esteem and sexual intercourse, such that low self-esteem increased the chances that a girl would engage in her first intercourse experience by age 13” (Impett 15).
She also introduces another very startling statistic that goes even farther than just the United States:
“Another important indicator of mental health, especially during a time when most adolescent girls are undergoing puberty and its ensuing bodily changes, is a girl’s satisfaction with her developing body (Tolman, Impett, Tracy, & Michael, 2004). Research has shown that body dissatisfaction is associated with early coital debut. For Norwegian 10th grade girls 15 to 16 years old, negative feelings about one’s body were associated with earlier ages of engaging in first sexual intercourse (Valle et al., 2009)” (Impett 15).
It’s a sad truth, but, many girls (and grown women for that matter) rely on sex when they don’t have a proper satisfaction with themselves. This can be prevented; a good home and good relationships settle the problem of too low of self-esteem of a young girl. Every girl goes through this, but with a good talk with parents, support, and constant verbal connections with family can help this not be a problem. Talking with girls about their appearance, their insecurities is the best therapy.
Now, let’s put the spotlight on boys. Osborne says in her own paper on “Boys and Family Education” that talking is also a great solution when it comes to boys, especially about sex. Too many times having sex is relating to being a better man in their peers’ eyes, talking to a parent could be a great way to open further understanding on the matter.
  “Boys are inclined to think that sex is love and love is sex. The parts of our culture obvious to young people do little to disabuse them of this impression. They need to learn that sex can express hostility as well as love; that sex is only one of many avenues for the expression of love; and that often the most mature expressions of love are not sexual” (Osborne 51).

Annotations! Dope!

Kirby, Douglas. "Abstinence, Sex, And STD/HIV Education Programs For Teens: Their Impact On Sexual Behavior, Pregnancy, And Sexually Transmitted Disease." Annual Review Of Sex Research 18.(2007): 143-177. SocINDEX with Full Text. Web. 11 Mar. 2012.
In "Abstinence, Sex, and STD/HIV Education Programs for Teens: Their Impact on Sexual Behavior, Pregnancy, and Sexually Transmitted Disease" by Douglas Kirby, he asserts that multiple approaches can be helpful when trying to prevent and educate teens about pregnancy, STD/HIV and sex. Kirby explains several studies that have been conducted in the last decade and introduces the statistics of that year of teen pregnancy and STD/HIV, he then states the correlation of the two, which explains if one of the five programs work or not. In order to improve the health programs in schools and prevent teen pregnancy, this article was written. The intended audience are United States parents, teachers, and advocates of abstinence and prevention of teen pregnancy. This will provide ethos in my paper, as well as a demonstration of the solution of the problem.

Emily A. Impett, et al. "Pathways To Early Coital Debut For Adolescent Girls: A Recursive Partitioning Analysis." Journal Of Sex Research 49.1 (2012): 13-26. SocINDEX with Full Text. Web. 11 Mar. 2012.
"Pathways to Early Coital Debut for Adolescent Girls: A Recursive Partitioning Analysis" is a study conducted by Matthew R. Pearson, Tatyana Kholodkov, James M. Henson, and Emily A. Impett claiming the factors that may lead to early involvement with sex in young girls. The group examined a sample size of 104 adolescent girls  and tried to identify which were at high risk of engaging in sex by high school by putting them in different groups by asking several sexual questions. In order to try to identify why young girls are having sex so early, this study was conducted. The intended audience are educated adults looking to prevent and understand the problem of young girls having intercourse. I will use this to bring ethos to my paper and relate the problem in the real world with numbers.

Atwood, Joan. "Mommy's Little Angel, Daddy's Little Girl: Do You Know What Your Pre-Teens Are Doing?." American Journal Of Family Therapy 34.5 (2006): 447-467. SocINDEX with Full Text. Web. 11 Mar. 2012.
In Mommy’s Little Angel, Daddy’s Little Girl: Do You Know What Your Pre-Teens Are Doing?" by Joan D. Atwood, she discusses the family aspect of young daughter engaging in sexual practices through chatting on the internet, their parents having no idea. She uses real world examples, and with each point expresses TALKING about it and bringing it up in family therapy. In order for therapists to further help families in family sessions, this article was written as a guide to how important talking and learning how easy it is for young girls to have sex and talk about it online. The intended audience is the authors' peers, but it beneficial to parents as well. This will further explain my point of young girls and sex, it will bring to light where this could come from and how the internet can play a huge part.

Scales, Peter. "The Context Of Sex Education And The Reduction Of Teen-Age Pregnancy." Child Welfare 58.4 (1979): 263-273. SocINDEX with Full Text. Web. 11 Mar. 2012.
Written in 1979, "The Context of Sex Education and the Reduction of Teen-age Pregnancy" by Peter Scales  explains the positive aspects of health classes in that time period. To explain his thesis, he goes on a timeline through statistics of teen pregnancy in the past decades, then comparing them to what is going on in the present time the article was written. In order to give insight on the positive effects of health classes in schools, this article was written as a dimensional opinion. The intended audience could be concerned school administration, parents, and US patrons trying to prevent teen pregnancy. This will be a great addition to my paper, saying that the problem with young teens having sex has longtime been a problem, even in the seventies!

Osborne, Ruth Farnham. "Boys And Family Life Education." Marriage & Family Living 23.1 (1961): 50-52. SocINDEX with Full Text. Web. 11 Mar. 2012.
"Boys and Family Life Education" by Ruth Farnham Osborne (1961) explains the importance of a boys understanding of feelings, how it's not unacceptable to express them, and the utter importance of talking about sex and the realness of it all. She uses plenty of pathos to express her points and quotes boys of her age. Her purpose is to bring light to the double standards of views of sex by both sexes, but shedding light on the often missed boy point of view, especially in her time period. The intended audience are her peers and parents. I will use this to explain the mind of young people when it comes to the injustice of the double standards that come as the consequence of young people having sex.

Little, Craig B., and Andrea Rankin. "Why Do They Start It? Explaining Reported Early-Teen Sexual Activity." Sociological Forum 16.4 (2001): 703. SocINDEX with Full Text. Web. 11 Mar. 2012.
"Why Do They Start It? Explaining Reported Early Teen Sexual Activity" by Craig B. Little and Andrea Rankin explains the causes of early coitus in young teens. Using statistics, statistical models, and the correlation of the time period (2001) the pair make their own conclusions. In order to further understand and possibly treat the problem of youngsters engaging intercourse, this article was written. The audience are oens interested in young people having sex and finding and extinguishing the cause. I will use this as a reference to my own theories as to what the cause of kids having sex is.

Working Thesis

Seems like today, there are more and more young people getting involved with sex- and that's not the only factor wrong here; not only are young people getting more familiar with sex, younger than young people are getting involved with sex. How is this happening? What's contributing? And how can we stop it?

Zoomin' in on the Prollem

There seems to be something going on with the way safe sex is being promoted, or rather, how it isn't being promoted well enough in schools and homes. Teenage kids are the ones being affected due to the absence of knowledge of condoms, birth control, and other forms of protection against teen pregnancy and STIs and STDs. Or, is the problem the absence of careful sex due to apathy of teens when engaging in sexual practices? Is it the cost of condoms and birth control? The cause in unclear. Studies have tried to clear that up, but it could be due to a number of controllers. There are a number of different programs implemented in high school health classes, but there are arguments that it promotes sex rather than promoting abstinence, and if that isn't true, ithat it isn't promoting it the right ways. Is sex saved for marriage even possible these days? The statistics of kids getting pregnant will only rise if this issue keeps getting put off.

Zoomin' in on the Prollem

There seems to be something going on with the way safe sex is being promoted, or rather, how it isn't being promoted well enough in schools and homes. Teenage kids are the ones being affected due to the absence of knowledge of condoms, birth control, and other forms of protection against teen pregnancy and STIs and STDs. Or, is the problem the absence of careful sex due to apathy of teens when engaging in sexual practices? Is it the cost of condoms and birth control? The cause in unclear. Studies have tried to clear that up, but it could be due to a number of controllers. There are a number of different programs implemented in high school health classes, but there are arguments that it promotes sex rather than promoting abstinence, and if that isn't true, ithat it isn't promoting it the right ways. Is sex saved for marriage even possible these days? The statistics of kids getting pregnant will only rise if this issue keeps getting put off.

Whattup, "Willingness to have Unprotected Sex"?!

"Willingness to Have Unprotected Sex" (2012), an article of research by Diana Greene Foster, Jenny A. Higgins, M. Antonia Biggs, and Christy McCain, compares different cultures and backgrounds to discover the amount of people who engage in unprotected sex in the United States. Using 1,497 men and women, the article uses the tie of logos and ethos with statistics, methods, and extensive research to examine a point. In order to present and extenuate the rising number of unsafe sex, and to see why people participate in it, this research experiment was conducted. The intended audience are sociologists, Americans, and educated people looking for an answer on how many people in America engage in unprotected sex and why.