College Students Exhibit Less Risky Sexual Behavior

When I read the title of the article, my eyes popped out of my head and I thought, “Really? Are we sure about that?” Sure, I did not have an Animal House type of college experience but I knew a lot of seemingly smart people in college who did a lot of stupid stuff, including myself. According to a recent study from researchers at the University of Washington, those teenagers who enrolled in college within half a year of finishing high school were less likely to be involved in unsafe sexual practices compared to those teenagers who chose not to attend college.

Jennifer Bailey, the lead researcher on the study, states, “No one has compared typical teens before, because we stop being so concerned about their sexual behavior after they leave high school. But it is important that we know what they are doing because late adolescence and the early 20s are the peak times for acquiring a sexually transmitted infection. HIV is a big risk. Chlamydia can affect fertility. The prevalence of gonorrhea and chlamydia are increasing. And some forms of human papillomavirus are related to cervical and other cancers. So it is important that we know what puts young people at risk for these sexually transmitted infections and what social structures may help protect them.” Results from the study demonstrated that young adults who attended college used condoms more and engaged in casual or risky sex less than their counterparts that did not choose to attend community college or a university. For the purposes of this study, Bailey and her colleagues defined casual sex as sex with somebody who was not a steady girlfriend or boyfriend, sex with somebody who they have just met (within 2 weeks) or sex with more than one person in a month span. Risky sex was defined as unprotected sex, sex with men who consider themselves bisexual or homosexual or sex with somebody who is HIV positive or is at high risk of HIV (like one who uses drugs intravenously).

Results of the study demonstrated that for college students, 23% used condoms inconsistently, 5% had risky sex, 15% admitted to casual sex encounters and over 50% had sexual encounters within the previous month. Results for the non-college participants demonstrated that 35% used condoms inconsistently, 16% had risky sex, 29% admitted to casual sex encounters and approximately 70% had sexual encounters within the previous month. What surprised researchers was the fact that there was very little difference in teenagers engaging in risky sex whether or not they chose to still live at home. States Bailey, “It was surprising to us that there wasn’t a protective effect of living at home for risky sexual behavior. Overall, adolescents who live with parents are less likely to be sexually active, but those who are having sex are just as likely to engage in risky sexual behavior. Generally what students do six months after graduation is what they did in high school. The kids who were doing risky sexual behavior in high school are continuing to do it. And the kids who were engaging in that behavior in high school generally are less likely to go to college.”