Extent of regretted sexual intercourse among young teenagers in Scotland: a cross sectional survey
BMJ 2000; 320 doi: https://doi.org/10.1136/bmj.320.7244.1243 (Published 06 May 2000) Cite this as: BMJ 2000;320:1243All rapid responses
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I wonder if we can rely on a survey based on multiple choice answers,
and further more is not clear if these children have been consulted
directly, I mean if someone spoke to them to verify their answers.
I also think that the result of this survey is rather worrying as we seem
to have so many children regretting an experience they will never be able
to withdraw from.
How can we have so many children, minors dealing with something so natural
but, I regret to say, so dangerous.
We all know sexual behaviour is not just another attitude but maybe the
strongest and most complex act that our rational self can put in being.
As we have seen from the survey result, many of these children have been ,
in many ways persuaded or even slightly forced and this can be considered
a hazard for their future relationships and state of mind. I am not a
fervent catholic nor a narrow minded person, but no minor can be left
alone to face such a complex decision.
Competing interests: No competing interests
Dickson et al.'s paper published in 1998 (Wight et al.'s reference 2)
also stressed regret, leading one to the suspicion that it was pushing an
anti-sex agenda. I wonder how many teenagers would report regret about
their first intercourse if they were asked about the first intercourse (or
sexual encounter) in which they experienced orgasm. The difference between
the 'regret' rates for boys and girls might then disappear.
Competing interests: No competing interests
The paragraph for This week in the BMJ reads:Young teenagers often
regret early
sexual intercourse
Sexual intercourse before the age of 16 is often
regretted but most studies have been done in older
teenagers looking back. Wight et al surveyed over
7000 14 year olds in Scotland, among whom 18% of boys
and 15% of girls had had heterosexual intercourse (p
1243); they found that 32% of girls
and 27% of boys said that their first intercourse had
happened too early, and of these 13% and 5% respectively
said that it should not have happened
at all. For girls regret was related to lack of control
of the situation.
-------
The title SHOULD read:FEW teenagers regret early sexual
intercourse. The abstract should read:
FEW teenagers regret early sexual intercourse
Sexual intercourse before the age of 16 is often NOT
regretted but most studies have been done in older
teenagers looking back. Wight et al surveyed over
7000 14 year olds in Scotland, among whom 18% of boys
and 15% of girls had had heterosexual intercourse (p
1243); they found that 68% of girls
and 73% of boys said that their first intercourse had
NOT happened too early, and of these ONLY 13% and 5%
respectively said that it should not have happened
at all. For girls,THE FEW regretS WERE related to lack
of control of the situation. INFORMATION WAS LACKING ON
WHETHER SEXUAL INTERCOURSE WAS EXPERIENCED WITHIN A
LOVE/FRIENDSHIP OR OTHER MEANINGFUL RELATIONSHIP.
Competing interests: No competing interests
What if the news media should choose to spin the equally valid
conclusions that most underaged children who had sex early had no regrets?
Competing interests: No competing interests
Extent of regretted sexual intercourse among young teenagers in Scotland
It would be interesting to see if the questions re "Social class of
father, social class of mother and family composition" looked for the
presence and depth of other significant relationships of all ages (mentors
I guess)?
In addition, is it possible that any realisation of 'regret' is
correlated to 'intelligence' - since very little time has passed, the
understanding of all the significance of the event will not have occurred
to many?
Competing interests: No competing interests