Recordpub.com - 'Tirade' by Erbe at odds with study

Bonnie Erbe's emotional outburst in her column ("Why abstinence-only programs fail teenagers," Record-Courier, Feb.2) is in stark contrast with the results of a scientific study of this topic, which was recently published in an American Medical Association-sponsored journal (Archives of Pediatric & Adolescent Medicine (2010), Vol 164, No.2, pp. 152-159.). This later study tested whether an educational program aimed at preventing risky sexual behaviors among young adolescents would be most effective if it was based on: 1.) teaching abstinence and delaying sexual activity, 2.) teaching young adolescents how to practice safer sex or 3.) a combination of both approaches.

The results demonstrated that the abstinence-only program appeared to be as effective as a combined curriculum and more effective than the safer sex-only curriculum in delaying sexual activity.

In the same issue of this journal, an editorial commentary on this paper included the statement:"These are the findings of the scientific process. The results of this study now must be combined with those from other studies on prevention of sexually transmitted infections and unintended pregnancy and become part of the knowledge base for the formation of public policy..."

One cannot conclude that already practiced abstinence-only programs are also effective but they clearly demonstrate that this kind of intervention can be effective in principle, not withstanding Ms. Erbe's non-scientific tirade.

Frederick Walz

Ravenna

1.	Posted by Uknown February 8, 2010
	The study cited by Erbe correlates slightly higher teen pregnancy and abortion rates with greatly increased federal funding for abstinence-only sex education under the George W. Bush administration. http://www.recordpub.com/news/article/4760488 In the Pennsylvania study published in the Archives of Pediatric & Adolescent Medicine, 21 percent of participants (662 African American students in grades 6 and 7) in a particular abstinence-only sex education "intervention" self-reported sexual intercourse within the previous 3 months during a 24 month follow-up period compared to 29 percent for a control group. "The model-estimated probability of ever having sexual intercourse by the 24-month follow-up was 33.5% in the abstinence-only intervention and 48.5% in the control group. Fewer abstinence-only intervention participants (20.6%) than control participants (29.0%) reported having coitus in the previous 3 months during the follow-up period ..." http://archpedi.ama-assn.org/cgi/content/short/164/2/152 Here is an AP article on the Pennsylvania study: http://www.ohio.com/lifestyle/family/83321257.html Please note that the AP article misrepresents the results of the study by confusing theoretical results (estimated figures of 34 and 49 percent for the duration of the 24 month follow-up period) with actual results (21 and 29 percent self-reports for the previous 3 months during the 24 month follow-up period). The AP article states: "The classes didn't preach saving sex until marriage or disparage condom use." Also: "Psychologist John Jemmott III, the lead author, called the findings surprising given negative results in previous abstinence-only research. Jemmott said the single focus may have been better at encouraging abstinence than the other approaches in his study. "The message was not mixed with any other messages," said Jemmott ..." The Pennsylvania study suggests not, as some would have it, that abstinence-only sex education, in general, works, but that the inclusion of moral instruction and deprecation of birth control in many such programs may, in fact, reduce their effectiveness.