title: Acculturation-related variables, sexual initiation, and subsequent sexual behavior among Puerto Rican, Mexican, and Cuban youth.
abstract: The relationship among acculturation-related variables, past sexual activity, and subsequent sexual behavior was examined for a sample of Latino youth in the United States over a 12-month period. A subsample from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health database was analyzed by means of a prospective design. History of sexual intercourse predicted subsequent sexual behavior over the ensuing 12 months. The acculturation-related variables were related to whether an adolescent reported being sexually active at Wave 1 but in a complex fashion. Among recent immigrants, youth from English-speaking homes were less likely to be sexually active than those from Spanish-speaking homes. The opposite was observed for youth who were born in the United States or who had resided in the United States most of their lives.
authors.affiliation: School of Social Work and Heilbrunn Department of Population and Family Health, Mailman School of Public Health, Columbia University, New York, NY 10027, USA. rg650@columbia.edu
authors.forename: Vincent
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Guilamo-Ramos
authors.forename: James
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Jaccard
authors.forename: Juan
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Pena
authors.forename: Vincent
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Goldberg
mesh_terms: D000069:Acculturation; D000293:Adolescent; D000294:Adolescent Behavior / Q000523:psychology*; D003462:Cuba / Q000208:ethnology; D004641:Emigration and Immigration / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D005191:Family Characteristics / Q000208:ethnology; D005260:Female; D015658:HIV Infections / Q000517:prevention & control; D006630:Hispanic or Latino / Q000523:psychology* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D006801:Humans; D007802:Language; D008137:Longitudinal Studies; D008297:Male; D017058:Mexican Americans / Q000523:psychology; D008800:Mexico / Q000208:ethnology; D011446:Prospective Studies; D011647:Puerto Rico / Q000208:ethnology; D012111:Residence Characteristics / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D012309:Risk-Taking; D012737:Sex Factors; D012725:Sexual Behavior / Q000523:psychology* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D014481:United States / Q000453:epidemiology