Chapter 8 Flashcards
(47 cards)
How did kids learn about sex in the past?
Before 19th century, families slept in same bed or room, so children often learned about adult sex by hearing and seeing parents have sex
- Most children saw animals mating
Are kids today insulated from learning about sexuality?
Yes in modern western culture
Sexuality for infants
- Male fetuses have erections
- Female infants have vaginal lubrication
- Erections and lubrication may be reflexes and do not necessarily mean interest in sex
- Once babies can control their hands they may touch genitals
- Pelvic thrusting starts 8-10 months
- May be able to have orgasm by age 2 (in boys no ejaculation until puberty)
- Sometimes masturbation is mistaken for seizures by both parents and physicians
What do parents report about children touching their genitals?
Many children masturbate but it’s unknown why
- Public masturbation peaks around age 5, when kids start to realize what is acceptable in public
- Masturbation declines around age 5
- Parents often yell at their children to stop touching themselves
- Retrospective studies of adolescents find increased interest in sex and sexual behavior in this time, especially nearing puberty
How do parents’ reports about kids touching their genitals vary across cultures?
- In many tribal societies, parents stimulate their child’s genitals as a way to sooth infants and young children
- In some cultures, parents praise their kid’s genitals and touch their genitals while doing this
- In a cultural context where this is not abusive, secretive, or for the sexual pleasure of the adult, there are not negative consequences for kids who experience this
- In western culture only appropriate to touch a child’s genitals at bath time and while changing diapers/helping with toilet
Playing doctor
Children’s normal, age-appropriate exploration of their own and other’s bodies, often involving examining each other’s anatomy or dressing up as doctors
How parents can discuss sex with their kids
- Talk early and often
- Use teachable moments
- Balance negatives with positives
- Anticipate events
- Acknowledge diversity
- Communicate values
- Give practical advise
What percent of parents talk to their kids about sex?
- Few children receive comprehensive sex ed
- Children learn about sex from their peers who are often inaccurate
- Only 25% of mothers supply their daughters with any information about sexuality
- Sexes spend most time with same-sex peers
When does puberty start?
- 8-13 for girls and 9-14 for boys
- Anatomical and physiological maturation of both internal and external genitalia
- Secondary sex characteristics
- Growth spurt
- Brain changes that affect behavior
Are kids who do sexual behavior with same-sex peers gay?
Most sexual behavior happens between same-sex peers
- Kids are not necessarily gay
- Ex: boys masturbate together but they are not gay
What is true about “pregay” kids?
- Preadolescent children who end up lesbian/gay, often state that they were gender nonconforming
- During preadolescents, feminine boys are excluded by both male and female peers
- Children who later come out as being trans are at least as gender on-conforming as those who become gay/lesbian adults, often even more gender non-conforming
Girls during puberty
- Breast development
- Pubic hair
- Changes in labia, vagina deepens
- Cervix begins secreting mucus
- Menarche (first period)
Boys during puberty
- Enlargement of testicles and scrotum
- Penis length and girth increase, pubic hair
- Voice deepens
- First ejaculation
- Facial hair
Gynecomastia
- Breast development in males
-Usually disappears without treatment - More obvious in overweight males
How has the timing of puberty changed since the early 1970s?
Puberty occurs earlier
- Diet
- Girls with high BMI enter puberty earlier
- Endocrine disruptors, which mimic sex hormones, may also alter timing
- Early puberty = earlier sexual activity
Are teens more or less likely to have coitus now than in the past?
- More common among teens now
- Between 1991 and 2013, less high school students engaged in penile-vaginal intercourse
- 27% of 17-year-old males had sex in the last 90 days
How common is oral sex?
- By age 17, 48% of males and 37% of females engaged in oral sex
- Preserve “vaginal virginity”
- Half of Americans have oral sex before coitus
- Black teens less likely to engage in non-coital sex, especially cunnilingus
How does the percentage of teens who have had penile-vaginal sex differ across races/ethnicities?
- Black = ~50%
- Hispanic = ~40%
- White = ~40%
- Asian American = ~20%
Why is development of sense of self important for sexual identity in teen years?
- Knowing sexual orientation
- Knowing what you’re looking for in sexual relationships
- Knowing who you attract as a sexual partner
What are teens trying to figure out in terms of sexuality?
Need to be able to refuse unwanted sex, including sex without a condom
Role of parents in refusing unwanted sex
Girls who talk frequently with their parents about sexual matters twice as likely to refuse unwanted sex
Advantages of teen pregnancy
- Fewer fertility problems
- Breast cancer lower
- More energy for childcare
Disadvantages of teen pregnancy
- 1/3 end in abortion
- Child less likely to be breastfed and more health problems for kid
- Father often not involved
- Education and employment opportunities reduced
When do people begin to have kids?
Throughout history and in many developing countries, many women marry in their mid-teens and have children shortly after that
