title: Understanding motivations for abstinence among adolescent young women: insights into effective sexual risk reduction strategies.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Pregnancy and sexually transmitted infections pose a significant threat to the health and well-being of adolescent women. Abstinence, when practiced, provides the most effective means of preventing these problems, yet the perspective of abstinent young women is not well understood. The purpose of this investigation was to characterize female adolescents' motivations for abstinence.
  
  
  METHODS
  As part of a larger, cross-sectional quantitative study investigating predictors of HIV risk reduction behaviors, qualitative responses from study participants who never had intercourse were analyzed in a consensus-based process using content analysis and frequency counts. An urban primary care site in a tertiary care center served as the setting, with adolescent young women ages 15-19 years included in the sample.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Five broad topic categories emerged from the data that characterized motivations for abstinence in this sample: personal readiness, fear, beliefs and values, partner worthiness, and lack of opportunity.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  A better understanding of the motivations for abstinence may serve to guide the development of interventions to delay intercourse.
authors.affiliation: School of Nursing, MGH Institute of Health Professions, Boston, MA, USA.
authors.forename: Ellen R
authors.initials: ER
authors.lastname: Long-Middleton
authors.forename: Pamela J
authors.initials: PJ
authors.lastname: Burke
authors.forename: Cheryl A
authors.initials: CA
authors.lastname: Cahill Lawrence
authors.forename: Lauren B
authors.initials: LB
authors.lastname: Blanchard
authors.forename: Naomi H
authors.initials: NH
authors.lastname: Amudala
authors.forename: Sally H
authors.initials: SH
authors.lastname: Rankin
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000294:Adolescent Behavior; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D003657:Decision Making; D005260:Female; D007722:Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice; D006801:Humans; D009042:Motivation; D011247:Pregnancy; D011275:Pregnancy, Unwanted / Q000523:psychology*; D040242:Risk Reduction Behavior; D012746:Sexual Abstinence / Q000523:psychology*; D012749:Sexually Transmitted Diseases / Q000517:prevention & control*; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D014481:United States / Q000453:epidemiology; D014505:Urban Population