The Relationship between the Levels of Sexual Health Literacy of Parents and Their Adolescent

Abstract

Background and Objective: Children and adolescents are at risk of experiencing sexual behaviors, which can harm their physical and mental health. Parents must understand gender issues and distinguish between normal and abnormal sexual behaviors to prevent maladaptive behaviors. This study aimed to examine the sexual health literacy of parents and adolescents and their correlation. Materials and Methods: The research conducted was correlational and focused on employees of Bushehr University of Medical Sciences. The sample size consisted of 87 parents and 33 children, selected through available sampling between 2020 and 2021. The researcher created questionnaires to measure the sexual health literacy of both parents and children. Data analysis was done using SPSS 23 software and the U-Man-Whitney test at a significance level of 0.5. Results: The Results show that the total score of parents’ sexual health literacy is equal to 117.05 and the standard deviation is 17.50. The highest average is related to an understanding with an average of 59.43 and the lowest is related to evaluation with an average of 16.89. It is 108.52 with a standard deviation of 25.56. The highest average is related to an understanding with an average of 54.97 and the lowest is related to evaluation with an average of 15.76. Also, the findings do not show a significant relationship between the level of sexual health literacy of parents and children. Conclusion: The study found no notable correlation between parents’ and children’s sexual health. However, parents displayed a higher level of health literacy compared to their children. This could positively impact the education of adolescents, given the importance of family-oriented education. Therefore, it is crucial to empower parents to educate their teenagers. © 2023, Mashhad University of Medical Sciences. All rights reserved.