Associations between sexual orientation, sex education curriculum, and exposure to affirming/disaffirming LGB content in two US-based cohorts of adolescents

ABSTRACT

Sexual health education experienced by lesbian, gay, and bisexual (LGB) youth varies widely in relevancy and representation. However, associations among sexual orientation, type of sex education, and exposure to affirming or disaffirming content have yet to be examined. Understanding these patterns can help to address gaps in LGB-sensitive sex education. Our goal in this study was to examine the prevalence and associations among abstinence-only until marriage (AOUM) and comprehensive sex education with LGB-affirming and -disaffirming content sought/received before age 18 (from 1999 to 2014) by sexual orientation (completely heterosexual with same-sex contact, completely heterosexual with no same-sex contact, mostly heterosexual, bisexual, gay/lesbian) in a sample of 12,876 US young adults from the Growing Up Today Study. Compared to completely heterosexual referents, LGB participants who received AOUM sex education were more likely to encounter LGB-disaffirming content, and this effect was largest among sexual minority participants. Conversely, exposure to comprehensive sex education was associated with receipt of LGB-affirming information. Overall, participants commonly reported receiving AOUM sex education, which may lead to deficits and potential harm to sexual minorities.

KEYWORDS:

• Sexual minorities
• sex education
• sexual health
• adolescent health
• stigma

Supplementary Material

Supplemental data for this article can be accessed online at https://doi.org/10.1080/14681811.2022.2072286.

Disclosure statement

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

Disclaimer

The findings and conclusions in this report are those of the authors and do not necessarily represent the official position of the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention or the views of the US National Institutes of Health.

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development [F32HD100081] and the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute [U01HL145386] of the National Institutes of Health. The first author (AT) was supported by grant F32HD100081 from the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, US National Institutes of Health. SBA was supported by grants R01HD057368 and R01HD066963 from the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, US National Institutes of Health, and by grants T71MC00009 and T76MC00001 from the Maternal and Child Health Bureau, Health Resources and Services Administration, US Department of Health and Human Services. BMC was supported by grant MRSG CPHPS 130006 from the American Cancer Society.