title: Family homework and school-based sex education: delaying early adolescents' sexual behavior.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Early sexual activity can undermine adolescents' future school success and health outcomes. The purpose of this study was to assess the role of a family homework component of a comprehensive sex education intervention in delaying sexual initiation for early adolescents and to explore what social and contextual factors prevent adolescents from completing these family homework activities.
  
  
  METHODS
  This mixed methods study included 6th- and 7th-grade survey responses from 706 students at 11 middle school schools receiving a sex education intervention, as well as interviews from a subset of 33, 7th-grade students from the larger sample.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Adolescents who completed more family homework assignments were less likely to have vaginal intercourse in 7th grade than those who completed fewer assignments, after controlling for self-reports of having had vaginal intercourse in 6th grade and demographic variables. Participants' explanations for not completing assignments included personal, curriculum, and family-based reasons.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Family homework activities designed to increase family communication about sexual issues can delay sex among early adolescents and contribute to school-based sex education programs. Successful sex education programs must identify and address barriers to family homework completion.
authors.affiliation: Research Scientist, (jgrossma@wellesley.edu), Cheever House/Wellesley Centers for Women, Wellesley College, Wellesley, MA 02481.
authors.forename: Jennifer M
authors.initials: JM
authors.lastname: Grossman
authors.forename: Alice
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Frye
authors.forename: Linda
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Charmaraman
authors.forename: Sumru
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Erkut
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000294:Adolescent Behavior / Q000523:psychology*; D017677:Age Distribution; D001900:Boston; D002648:Child; D003142:Communication; D003625:Data Collection; D005191:Family Characteristics; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007407:Interviews as Topic; D016015:Logistic Models; D008297:Male; D010287:Parent-Child Relations; D015397:Program Evaluation; D020377:Self Efficacy; D017678:Sex Distribution; D012736:Sex Education; D012725:Sexual Behavior / Q000523:psychology* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data
keywords: homework; middle school; sex education