Abstinence Only Program
Written by TPOK Archivist on August 29, 2017
Abstinence only education is a form of sexual education. The purpose is to teach school age children that abstaining from sexual activity until marriage is not only the expected standard of behaviour, but is also the source of great psychological, health, and social rewards. Additionally, this kind of program teaches children that all eventual sexual activity is to take place in a committed, monogamous, and heterosexual marriage.
Abstinence only education programs may teach students how to avoid unwanted sexual advances and encourage them to avoid drug and alcohol use.
A form of “sex education” that teaches abstinence (not having sex) as the only morally correct option for unmarried people. They don’t include information about protection from STDs or pregnancy. See “abstinence-only-until-marriage programs.”
Abstinence-only sex education is a form of sex education that teaches not having sex outside of marriage. It often excludes other types of sexual and reproductive health education, such as birth control and safe sex. Comprehensive sex education, by contrast, covers the use of birth control and sexual abstinence.
Evidence does not support the effectiveness of abstinence-only sex education. It has been found to be ineffective in decreasing HIV risk in the developed world. It does not decrease rates of sexual activity or unplanned pregnancy when compared to comprehensive sex education.
The topic of abstinence-only education is controversial in the United States, with proponents claiming that comprehensive sex education encourages premarital sexual activity, and critics arguing that abstinence-only education is religiously motivated and that the approach has been proven ineffective and even detrimental to its own aims.
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