Teen Listening Tours

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 mngaging Teens in the Issue

_ A priority of the Task Force is to hear the voice of teens

and engage them throughout the entire task force process
_ First step was to schedule regional listening tours to have
a conversation with teens about teen pregnancy, sex
education and adolescent behavior
_ UNF nursing students received training on focus groups,
developed questions and facilitated the ³tours´
_ Heard from a wide variety of teens:
Î pural
Î Urban
Î Difference paces & mthnicities: White, Black, Hispanic
Î Male & Female
Î Ages 13-19
 Listening Tours

_ Lighthouse Christian School

Î 12 girls (15-18 years old)
_ AMIKids
Î 15 boys (ages 14-18 years old)
_ Baker County YMCA
Î † teenagers (5 boys / 2 girls)
_ YouthLink
Î 14 teenagers (6 boys / 8 girls)
_ Hollybrook Homes
Î † teenagers (4 boys / 3 girls)
_ A. Philip pandolph
Î 2 Listening Tours ± November 10, 2010
What influences teens to have sex or have
babies?

 !"##$%&# !%'%#&

Î Peer Pressure

Î Family

Î Self-msteem

Î mducation
 Peer Pressure
_ Teens say sex is very prevalent in their lives:
Î Media
Î pap & other music videos
Î Teens know their family members (brothers, sisters, cousins) are
having sex.
Î Constantly hearing about sex creates a curiosity

_ Many teens feel egged on or pushed into having sex:

Î By their friends
Î From older siblings or cousins.

_ Teens do it because they think it¶s cool and they want to brag
± some may even lie about having sex just to be cool.

_ Many do it just to feel popular ² ³mveryone else is doing it´

mentality
 Peer Pressure
_ ³Our generation was
raised on sex from a
very young age.´

_ ³My older brother

pushed me to have sex´

_ ³Young people do it to
be popular.´

_ ³Because people think

it¶s cool and they want
to fit in´
 Self-msteem
_ Teens are aware of more than just the physical aspects of
sex.
_ mmotion:
Î Sex is emotionally overwhelming ± can create attachment, etc.
Î Many teens can feel sad, used when they are dumped after having
sex.
_ Trust:
Î If their partner was pregnant, male teens would immediately ask for
a DNA test (influence from their mother or aunt).
Î In relationships: Girls feel that having another baby will ensure the
father of her child stays in the relationship.
_ Confidence:
Î Girls may dress sexy to get attention.
Î Teen girls dress sexy because they think their body is all they have.
Self-msteem

_ ³Girls dress sexy because they don¶t

believe in themselves and don¶t have any
confidence ± they just want to be
noticed.´

_ ³Families are broken up« girls are just

looking for someone to love them.´

_ ³But if you have sex and the guy just

moves on, it can make you feel sad, mad,
guilty and have trust issues.´

_ ³If you¶re not with a girl 24/†, you don¶t

know if the baby is yours.´
 Family

_ Family is a big part of teens¶ lives ² it is a source of

information and an influence on their behavior

_ Having the talk: Teens want to be able to ask their parents

about sex, but it¶s uncomfortable and parents don¶t always
know how to talk to their kids about it or handle the fact
that their children are sexually active

_ Continuing the cycle: If teens are raised by young parents,

many of the teens think it¶s normal and can¶t see past that
± they become young parents themselves.
 Family
_ Family dynamics:
Î Many boys think the girls are responsible for raising a
child because their moms did it for their family.
U †5/25:Males said three quarters of the responsibility falls
on the mother of the child
Î Many girls start having sex at a young age because they
come from a broken family and they use sex to get
away from that.
Î Some of the clothes teen girls wear may not be
considered ³inappropriate´ depending on her family
values.
Î Many very young kids (3+ years old) learn about sex
from their cousins ± just learning through absorption.
 Family
_ ³Girls, especially, start having sex at a very young age because
their families are broken up and they are using sex to get away
from that.´

_ ³Parents need to learn how to make the topic less awkward to

talk about.´

_ ³Parent should be open with kids ± talk about the issues.´

_ ³Parents need to be less controlling ± they need to provide

kids with more freedom, so they don¶t go wild.´

_ ³Dads don¶t have to be there [with the child] every day, so it¶s
different.´
mducation

_ Where are teens getting their

information about sex from?
Î Media
Î Friends
Î Internet
Î Family
Î A little bit in school health class
(mainly anatomy and hygiene).
 mducation

_ Sex education in school:

Î The first thing they stress is you shouldn¶t have sex. It¶s not helpful
because not everyone is abstinent.
Î You cannot stop teens from having sex ± so they want and need all of
the details (good and bad).
U Holistic approach to sex education.
Î @ery limited education on birth control and STI prevention.
U Many believe birth control doesn¶t work.
U Schools tell teens not to have sex, but many are already sexually active
and need to know how to practice safe sex.
Î Want to know more about the emotions relating to sex.
Î Don¶t scare teens away from having sex because you don¶t want
them to be scared to ask questions or not take sex seriously when
confronted with problems/issues.
U Protection, emotions, pregnancy prevention, peer pressure.
 mducation

_ ³Schools teach everything else,

why not sex?´

_ ³They all say µDon¶t have sex.¶, but

what is so bad about it. Almost
like telling a kid not to do
something ± makes them want to
do it more«´

_ ³They need to teach the TpUTH

about sex ± sex education is
sugarcoated and boring.´
 mducation
_ ³There are side effects to birth control like weight gain ±
it¶s like steroids.´

_ ³Condoms aren¶t effective because guys try to use two for

more protection, they don¶t know how to put them on,
use the wrong size and they break.´

_ ³Teens don¶t know the consequences of sex ± it¶s not

taught in school. If they went into details about it, they
would get somewhere with teens.´

_ ³Obviously it didn¶t help; Teen pregnancy just got worse.´

Now that we know what teens think«

ü"(!)( *#&+
 Provide better sex education
_ What kind of sex education do teens want and
need?
Î Abstinence-only education is NOT working ± need to be realistic!
U Teens want to know the truth.
U Open and honest conversations about sex (good and bad) instead of
demonizing it.
³Sex education is sugarcoated and boring.´

Î Need to include the emotions in sex education (attachment, guilt,

anger, etc.)

Î mducation needs to include STDs.

U Learn best through visuals ² photos of STDs gets their attention
better
 Provide better sex education, cont¶d.

_ What kind of sex education do teens want and need?

O


Î Much more information on birth control.
U Top prevention methods known/used: condoms, IUD, birth control pills and
tubes tied (in teens).
U General mistrust of birth control -- teens don¶t think it works

Î Holistic, consistent and age-appropriate sex education.

U ³Start early, do it yearly and go through college.´
U Sex education is needed earlier because kids are hearing about it much earlier.

Î Mentorship programs needed.

U Want to talk to someone who won¶t judge them and will get them the right
information and answers to their questions.
Would want a mentor or someone who is ³open-minded, outgoing,
someone they could trust and not make you feel bad.´
Provide better sex education, cont¶d.

_ What kind of sex education

do teens want and need?
O


Î Sex education classes need to be
taught in small classes by someone
they can relate to and trust.
U ³Someone in their 20¶s and has had sex
before ± not someone who is a virgin.´
U Abstinence for kids 11 and younger
U Honest education for those 12 and
older: risks, protection, lifestyle
consequences
 mducate and mngage Parents

_ What can parents do to be more engaged?

Î mducate parents to make them feel more comfortable talking
to their kids.
U Parents need to be ³open with kids and talk about the issues´.
U Parents need to learn how to make the topics less awkward.

Î Break the cycle: Teens need to see their OWN potential ± they
aren¶t able to see beyond their parents actions and they need to
make a life for themselves.
U Boost self-esteem for teens.
U Teens only know what they see, they don¶t have role models.
U Teens need to recognize that they need to be emotionally and
financially ready before they have children.
 Solutions

_ How can teens pregnancy

and repeat teen pregnancy
be prevented?
Î You cannot stop teens from having
sex, but can educate to help prevent
teen pregnancy.

Î Teach teens about healthy

relationships and self worth.
U Teens can¶t depend on having a baby
(or another baby) to keep their
relationship and life together.
 Solutions

_ How can teens pregnancy and repeat teen

pregnancy be prevented? O



Î Teens need to know what their options are and where to get
birth control.
U Parents have to provide consent for their teens to get on birth
control.
U Access to birth control for sexually active teens and those who
already have had a baby should be a priority.
 Solutions

_ ³Pregnant teens mindset: µIf I can deal with one baby, I

can have another. I can handle it ± I¶m grown.¶´

_ ³Some girls find it cool to have a baby. They see other

girls with babies and they want one too.´

_ ³Parents need to learn how to talk about sex, how to deal

with the fact that their kids are having sex and need to
know sex is bound to happen so it¶s better to face it ±
come to terms with it and address it.´

_ ³Teens have repeat pregnancies because they want to

keep the guy in their life.´
 What we learned!

_ There is a huge gap between knowledge and

behavior.
Î Teens know what they need to do to prevent pregnancy, but no
one is talking to them and holding them accountable. They
aren¶t holding themselves responsible/accountable.
U Teens getting pregnant on the pill ± not taking it every day like
they are supposed to.
U Unprotected sex

Î Teens are not actively preventing pregnancy (taking pill

correctly, not using condoms regularly, going out to find birth
control).
What we learned!

Î Teens don¶t know the full

consequences of having a baby until
the baby arrives ± teen mindset: ³It
can¶t happen to me.´

Î There isn¶t a connection between a

baby and a lifelong commitment.

Î Teens need to see their own potential

± they need to see beyond their
parent¶s actions and their own life.
U Only know what they see ± they don¶t
have positive role models.
 What we can improve

_ Teens don¶t think birth control works!

Î Teens need pmLIABLm information.

_ Teens need mentors who can give them good

information and provide them with support.

_ Parents need a program to help them feel more

comfortable talking to their teens about sex.
Î Teens want to talk to their parents about sex.
]uestions??