Brief report: The influence of posttraumatic stress on unprotected sex among sexually active adolescent girls and boys involved in the child welfare system of the United States

• Published in: Journal of adolescence (London, England.) England.), 2013-10, Vol.36 (5), p.835-837
• Main Author: Cavanaugh, Courtenay E
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Adolescent; Adolescent Development; Adolescent girls; Adolescents; Adult and adolescent clinical studies; Anxiety disorders. Neuroses; At Risk Persons; Biological and medical sciences; Child; Child protection; Child welfare; Child Welfare Services; Child welfare system; Developmental psychology; Female; Females; Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology; Gender Differences; Humans; Intervention; Male; Males; Medical sciences; Midwestern United States; New England; Pediatrics; Post traumatic stress disorder; Posttraumatic stress; Posttraumatic Stress Disorder; Psychology. Psychoanalysis. Psychiatry; Psychology. Psychophysiology; Psychopathology. Psychiatry; Risk assessment; Self Concept; Sex Differences; Sexual behavior; Sexual behaviour; Sexual Intercourse; Sexual risk taking; Social Welfare; Stress; Stress Disorders, Post-Traumatic - psychology; Surveys and Questionnaires; Symptoms; Teenagers; United States; United States of America; Unsafe Sex - psychology; Unsafe Sex - statistics & numerical data; Women
• ISSN: 0140-1971; 1095-9254
• DOI: 10.1016/j.adolescence.2013.07.004

Abstract While posttraumatic stress (PTS) has been positively associated with risky sexual behavior (RSB) among adult women, there is a paucity of research examining PTS in relation to RSB among adolescent girls and boys. This study aimed to replicate findings among adult women with sexually active adolescents (179 females and 106 males) involved in a national study of children in the United States child welfare system. After controlling for age and the complex study design, sexually active adolescent girls with clinically significant PTS symptoms were more than seven times more likely than those without such symptoms to report unprotected intercourse. In contrast, sexually active adolescent boys with clinically significant PTS symptoms were less likely than those without such symptoms to report unprotected intercourse. Research is needed to 1) understand the mechanisms linking PTS and RSB, 2) further explore gender differences reported here, and 3) inform RSB interventions in this high-risk population.