Delinquency and sexual experiences across adolescence: does depression play a role?

Abstract

Purpose: To elucidate a possible connection between delinquency and adolescent sexual behaviours in different age groups from 14 to 20 and the role of depression therein.

Materials and methods: Data were gathered from the cross-sectional Finnish School Health Promotion Study 2010 and 2011 with 186,632 respondents. We first examined the bivariate relationship between delinquency and sexual behaviour, and then proceeded to multivariate models accounting for self-reported depression. Analyses were conducted separately for girls and boys, in seven age groups. The main outcomes were analysed by χ² test and logistic regression.

Results: Delinquency was connected to having experienced sexual intercourse across all age groups, and was related to reporting multiple sexual partners among sexually active adolescents, in both boys and girls, before and after controlling for depression. Delinquency and depression were independently associated with the sexual behaviours studied.

Conclusions: Being sexually active and engaging in risky sexual behaviours are related to delinquency in the adolescent population throughout the developmental phase, even in late adolescence when being sexually active is developmentally normative. Being sexually active is further connected to depression until middle adolescence, and risky sexual behaviours across adolescence. Clinicians working with adolescents presenting with delinquent behaviour with or without depression need to address their sexual health needs.

Chinese abstract

目的：为了探讨14至20岁不同年龄段青少年犯罪与青少年性行为之间的可能联系, 以及抑郁症在其中的作用。材料和方法：数据来自于2010年和2011年的芬兰学校健康促进的横断面研究, 共186,632名受访者。我们首先研究了犯罪和性行为之间的二元关系, 然后用多元模型对自我评估的抑郁症进行了研究。对7个年龄组的男孩和女孩分别进行了分析。主要结果采用χ²检验和logistic回归分析。结果：所有年龄组青少年犯罪与经历过的性行为有关, 在性行为活跃的青少年中, 男孩和女孩, 抑郁症控制前、后, 与多个性伴侣有关。犯罪和抑郁与所研究的性行为独立相关。结论：性活跃和危险性行为在整个青少年发育阶段都与犯罪相关, 即使是青春期后期性活跃已经发展到正常。性活跃和抑郁直到青春期中期一直相关, 与危险性行为在整个青春期相关。对于表现出不良行为的青少年, 无论是否抑郁, 临床医生都需要关注他们的性健康需求。

Keywords:

• Adolescence
• risky sexual behaviour
• depression
• delinquency
• self-reported measures

Disclosure statement

The authors report no conflicts of interest.

Notes

1 Wellbeing of adolescents in Finland 2000–2013. National Institute for Health and Welfare (THL). Report 25/2014. http://www.julkari.fi/handle/10024/1

2 http://www.vaestoliitto.fi/tieto_ja_tutkimus/vaestontutkimuslaitos/seksologinen_tutkimus/suomalaisten-seksuaalisuus-finse/finsex-seksielaman-aloittaminen/