Sexual Activity in Peruvian Adolescents

What is it about?

The Peruvian Ministry of Health reported in 2010 that 19.7% of adolescent secondary students had had sexual relationships and, of these, 46.7% had initiated these practices before the age of 14, with higher figures in boys than in girls (also regarding the frequency of masturbation). On the other hand, according to the Free Tele-Advisory Service of the ANAR Foundation, the most frequent questions asked by Peruvian adolescents were precisely about sexual relationships and masturbation. Sexual experiences, especially those that occur in the first years of life, play a crucial role in a person's sexual trajectory throughout his or her life. In addition, adolescents' positive beliefs about sexual activity impact and shape their normative development and, as such, promote appropriate adjustment. Both sexual relationships and masturbation are influenced by sociodemographic variables (e.g., gender, age, or frequency of religious practice) and sexual attitudes. In reference to this, this study explains the frequency of masturbation and sexual relationships in Peruvian adolescents based on age, religious adherence, erotophilia, attitudes towards sexual fantasies and masturbation, and the traditional sexual double standard. This study involved 1,120 heterosexual adolescents, aged 13 to 17 years (559 boys and 561 girls) from the province of Cuzco. The results indicated differences between boys and girls in erotophilia, negative attitudes towards masturbation and positive attitudes towards sexual fantasies, with boys scoring higher on these variables. Sex differences were also found, in the same direction, in the frequency of solitary masturbation and sexual relationships. The frequency of solitary masturbation was positively explained by erotophilia and positive attitude towards sexual fantasies in boys and only by this attitude in girls. On the other hand, the frequency of sexual relationships was explained by age and a positive attitude towards sexual fantasies in boys, while in girls it was only explained by the latter attitude.

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Photo by Devang Saklani on Unsplash

Photo by Devang Saklani on Unsplash

Why is it important?

These results show the importance of attitudes towards aspects of sexuality in the determination of the frequency of masturbation and sexual relationships in adolescents. Specifically, the role of specific sexual attitudes, especially a positive attitude towards sexual fantasies, is highlighted as a relevant variable for sexual health. This study provides relevant findings on the study of the frequency of sexual relationships and solitary masturbation in adolescents in the field of sexological research, education and clinical practice.

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