Abstract
Early sexual debut entails potential risks, such as unsafe and unwanted sexual experiences. This longitudinal study examined the joint and relative role of bio psychosocial factors in the timing of sexual debut. Dutch adolescents (n = 366) completed three questionnaires (interval: one year). For the ANCOVAs and logistic regression analyses (conducted separately for boys and girls) two groups were made: ‘debut <16’ and ‘debut 16’. In line with the biopsychosocial model, significant effects were found for both individual and social factors. When these factors were examined simultaneously, it appeared that, for both girls and boys, peers were the most important predictors of early sexual debut. The findings highlight focus points for prevention and intervention programs for adolescents and parents.
Translated title of the contribution | Early sexual debut in the Netherlands: A longitudinal study on the role of individual characteristics, parenting and peers |
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Original language | Dutch |
Pages (from-to) | 194-205 |
Number of pages | 12 |
Journal | Kind en adolescent |
Volume | 33 |
DOIs | |
Publication status | Published - 2012 |