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The Social and relationship contexts and cognitions associated with romantic and sexual experiences of early-adolescent girls

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Abstract

Researchers have focused extensively on first intercourse experiences of adolescent girls, linking experiences to severe negative outcomes such as pregnancy and disease. Little is known about the social and relationship contexts or cognitions of the broader range of normative, positive experiences, especially among ethnically diverse samples of girls. An ethnically diverse sample of 180 earlyadolescent girls (12–14 years) was interviewed about individual, partner, situational, and relationship characteristics of their romantic and sexual interactions. Participation in unsupervised, mixedsex encounters and time alone with boys are early contexts of sexual interactions, but not for all girls and not on all occasions. Promotion of sexual and reproductive health relies on a broader focus of developmental processes associated with sexual and romantic experiences. Implications of the findings relate to the provision of education regarding the range of sexual experiences that constitute positive development.

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  1. Department of Family and Social Medicine, Albert Einstein College of Medicine, 1300 Morris Park Avenue, 10461, Bronx, NY

    Lucia F. O’Sullivan

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  1. Lucia F. O’Sullivan
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Correspondence to Lucia F. O’Sullivan.

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O’Sullivan, L.F. The Social and relationship contexts and cognitions associated with romantic and sexual experiences of early-adolescent girls. Sex Res Soc Policy 2, 13–24 (2005). https://doi.org/10.1525/srsp.2005.2.3.13

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