Secondary School Students’ Views on Sexuality and Sexual Health Education

Abstract

Objective

This study examined the views of secondary school students on sexuality and sexual health education in Hong Kong, China.

Methods

A total of 818 secondary school students (mean age = 15.3 years, SD = 1.6) participated in this study by completing a questionnaire consisted of items on sociodemographic characteristics, sexual attitudes, and other measuring scales.

Results

Students were slightly permissive in sexual attitudes and supported sexual health education. However, students who were male, highly liberal in sexual attitudes, and low in religiosity and spirituality were less supportive.

Conclusions

Educators may need to address these deterring factors of sexual health education before teaching specific sexual health topics.

PRACTICAL IMPLICATIONS

Secondary school students in Hong Kong show liberal sexual attitudes. Liberal sexual attitudes may lead to risky sexual behaviors which may deleteriously affect students’ physical and psychological health. To promote students’ sexual health, school-based SHE should foster positive sexual attitudes among students, particularly students who are male, older, higher in year of study, or non-religious affiliated. Our data on students’ responses to items of ATSS provide useful information on sexual topics that need to be addressed. School authorities may consider conducting intervention or workshops in schools to disseminate information about exogenous factors of liberal sexual attitudes and their associations with risky sexual behaviors. Students may be informed of the protective measures of sexual activities and forewarned about the negative health consequences of risky sexual behaviors. Although majority of the students are supportive of school-based SHE, students who are male, liberal in sexual attitudes, low in religiosity and spirituality showed negative attitudes toward school-based SHE. To facilitate effective implementation of school-based SHE, educators may need to spend special effort on students who are less supportive of school-based SHE. Negative influence on attitudes toward SHE may be addressed before teaching specific sexual health topics.

Keywords:

• Secondary school students
• sexual attitudes
• sexual health education
• religiosity
• spirituality

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Additional information

Funding

The authors thank all the students who voluntarily participated in this study. This study is supported by a grant (UGC/FDS11/H03/20) by the Research Grant Council of the University Grant Committee of Hong Kong, for which the authors would like to express their appreciation.