Many teenage girls feel pressured into sex: study

By Amy Norton

NEW YORK (Reuters Health) – Teenage girls commonly have sex
not because they want to, but because they feel pressured into
it – and the result may be a higher risk of sexually
transmitted diseases and pregnancy, a new study suggests.

Researchers found that among 279 teenage girls they
interviewed, many said they’d given in to unwanted sex at some
point because they were afraid their boyfriend would get angry.

The findings, published in the Archives of Pediatrics &
Adolescent Medicine, indicate that may teenagers — both female
and male — need help in negotiating their relationships.

“We need to give guidance to teens on how to communicate
with each other,” said lead study author Dr. Margaret J.
Blythe, a pediatrician at the Indiana University Medical Center
in Indianapolis.

That means helping girls to take more control over their
sexual activity, and boys to understand what constitutes
pressure, according to Blythe.

The importance of educating boys, she told Reuters Health,
“is often the untalked-about part.”

The study included girls between the ages of 14 and 17 who
were seen at urban health clinics in Indianapolis. Over about
two years, the girls were periodically interviewed about their
current relationships, including any instances of unwanted sex
over the past three months. Specific questions included: “Would
he break up with you unless you had sex?” and “Would he get mad
if you didn’t want to have sex?”

In all, 41 percent said they’d had unwanted sex at some
point. The most common reason was fear that their boyfriend
would become angry. Ten percent, though, said their partner
forced them have sex when they didn’t want to. About 5 percent
said they’d had sex after being offered money or gifts.

Girls who reported unwanted sex also reported less condom
use, a poorer relationship quality and a higher rate of
pregnancy than their peers, the study found.

Other research has shown that unwanted sex, particularly in
cases of rape, can lead to depression, anxiety and
post-traumatic stress disorder. The current findings, Blythe
and her colleagues say, point to sexually transmitted diseases
and unintended pregnancy as additional serious consequences.

Most of the girls in the study were black and lower-income,
and it’s not clear how representative the findings are of the
general population. But the results are similar to those of
some past studies, according to Blythe and her colleagues.

For example, girls who reported unwanted sex were more
likely than their peers to have a partner who smoked marijuana,
and other studies have linked drug and alcohol use to forced or
unwanted sex.

Substance use can blur the line between consensual and
non-consensual sex, the researchers write, and boys who use
drugs or alcohol may become “less sensitive” to what their
partners want or don’t want.

SOURCE: Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine, June
2006.