Sprecher Susan, O'Sullivan Lucia F, Drouin Michelle, Verette-Lindenbaum Julie, Willetts Marion C
Department of Sociology & Anthropology, Illinois State University.
Department of Psychology, University of New Brunswick.
J Sex Res. 2022 Jan;59(1):39-52. doi: 10.1080/00224499.2021.1885599. Epub 2021 Mar 1.
Early sexual debut has been a focus of social scientific research due to its association with adverse circumstances and negative outcomes. However, there has been a recent shift to considering not only chronological age, but also the degree to which the event is viewed to be optimally timed (i.e., the perception that it occurred at the "right time" versus too soon). The purpose of this study was to assess how individual/family background variables and contextual aspects of the experience (including partner and relationship aspects) are associated with both the actual age at sexual debut and the perceived acceptability of the timing of the event. Using data collected from students at a U.S. university between 1990 and 2019 ( = 6,430), several factors (in addition to chronological age) were associated with the perceived acceptability of the timing of sexual debut. Strong gender differences were found - women perceived their timing to be less acceptable, even though they did not differ from men in actual age at sexual debut. Other robust predictors of perceived acceptability included (lower) religious involvement and recalling desire (for the experience), pleasure, and lower guilt at the time. Only slight changes occurred over the 30-year period in age at sexual debut and perceived acceptability of the timing. Suggestions for future research are provided and implications for sex education/sexual health interventions are discussed.
由于过早开始性行为与不利环境和负面结果相关联，它一直是社会科学研究的重点。然而，最近的研究重点不仅转向了按时间顺序计算的年龄，还转向了该事件被认为是最佳时机的程度（即认为性行为发生在“合适时间”而非过早的看法）。本研究的目的是评估个人/家庭背景变量以及经历的背景因素（包括伴侣和关系方面）如何与首次性行为的实际年龄以及该事件发生时间的可接受性认知相关联。利用1990年至2019年期间从一所美国大学的学生中收集的数据（n = 6430），除了按时间顺序计算的年龄外，还有几个因素与首次性行为发生时间的可接受性认知相关联。研究发现了显著的性别差异——女性认为她们的性行为发生时间不太可接受，尽管她们在首次性行为的实际年龄上与男性没有差异。其他与可接受性认知密切相关的因素包括（较低的）宗教参与度以及回忆起当时对（性行为经历）的渴望、愉悦感和较低的内疚感。在这30年期间，首次性行为的年龄和对性行为发生时间的可接受性认知仅发生了轻微变化。本文提供了对未来研究的建议，并讨论了对性教育/性健康干预的启示。
