I’ve often overheard my teenage son tell one of his friends, “That kind of short-term pleasure equals long-term disaster.” Because my son really cares about how his friends’ lives turn out, he forcefully makes this argument when they talk about doing drugs, getting drunk, or having sex before marriage.
Research studies back up my son’s point! Robert Rector and Kirk A. Johnson, Ph.D. published an article that summarizes research on the advantages to teens when they abstain from having sex. This review reported that “over 90 percent agree that teens should be taught to abstain from sex until they have at least finished high school.” So my teen sons advice to his friends actually agrees with a majority of teenagers surveyed in that study.
You might be surprised by the findings summarized by Mr. Rector and Dr. Johnson’s article. Here’s some brief quotes from their longer article that is backed up by research studies:
- “Teens who abstain from sex are less likely to be depressed and to attempt suicide.“
- “Teens who abstain from sex are less likely… to experience STDs.”
- “Teens who abstain from sex are less likely… to have children out-of-wedlock.“
- “Teens who abstain from sex are less likely… to live in poverty and welfare dependence as adults.“
- “Teens who delay sexual activity are more likely to have stable and enduring marriages as adults.“
- “Teens who abstain from sex during high school years are substantially less likely to be expelled from school.“
- “Teens who abstain from sex during high school years are substantially… less likely to drop out of high school.“
- “Teens who abstain from sex during high school years are substantially… more likely to attend and graduate from college.“
- “Social science data show that teens who abstain from sex do substantially better on a wide range of outcomes.”
- “In short, teen virgins are more likely to possess character traits that lead to success in life.”
You can find the entire article by Robert Rector and Kirk A. Johnson, Ph.D. at this website:
http://www.heritage.org/Research/Abstinence/whitepaper10272005-1.cfm
If you’ve been sexually pressured into sex before you wanted it, or if you made some mistakes by having sex before marriage, I bet that you can still return to sexual abstinence and be a “secondary virgin” and reap many, if not all, of the benefits of being a teen virgin.
E-mail your comments or questions about this research on the advantages of being a teen virgin to: teensextoday@ProfessorGeorge.com or just write to me on my blog. If we post what you write, we will keep it anonymous. Count on me to be logical, ethical, and scientific in my answers.
–Professor George
George A. Rekers, Ph.D., FAACP
Distinguished Professor of Neuropsychiatry and Behavioral Science Emeritus
University of South Carolina School of Medicine
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