Teens wary of Internet for sexual health information

Have a read of this article from the Guttmacher Institute

TEENS WARY OF INTERNET FOR SEXUAL HEALTH INFORMATION

Exploratory Study Shows Teens More Likely to Turn to Family Members, School or Medical Professionals

Although most teens use the Internet daily, few consider it a main source of information about contraception or abstinence, according to a new qualitative study by Rachel K. Jones of the Guttmacher Institute and Ann E. Biddlecom of the United Nations Population Division. Additionally, in in-depth interviews at three public high schools in New York and Indiana, only a minority of the 58 study participants reported that they got any contraceptive or abstinence information online; those who accessed this information typically did so in response to a specific event (such as a school assignment) or, less commonly, to find the answer to a personal question.

Most of the teens interviewed were wary of sexual health information on the Internet. The teens indicated a distrust of online information because it is often user-generated and could therefore be incorrect. They also noted that they would probably have to sort through an abundance of sexually explicit material to find the factual information they were looking for. Teens were most likely to trust family members (usually parents) for sexual health information; their next most trusted sources were educators, medical professionals and friends.

There is great potential for the Internet to link more teens to accurate and comprehensive sexual health information and for increasing their trust in the information they get from this source. While a number of Web sites provide accurate sexual health information in a teen-friendly manner, one cannot assume that teens will find or seek out these sources on their own. Instead, the authors recommend that groups working to improve teens’ access to accurate sexual health information capitalize on their trust in family members and schools to guide them to those sites.

“Is the Internet Filling the Sexual Health Information Gap for Teens? An Exploratory Study” by Rachel K. Jones et al., of the Guttmacher Institute, is currently available online and will appear in a forthcoming issue of the Journal of Health Communications.

Benevolent Sexism

This looks like a nicely put together discussion regarding a topic that people often have trouble accepting. I found this in 'Medical News Today'. Please have a look.

"Research conducted at the University of Granada warns about the negative effects of the so-called "benevolent sexism", a term used for apparently "positive" ideas and attitudes of men towards women, which are based on the assumption that men must take care of and sacrifice themselves for women.

The research revealed that when individuals are told that a man has attitudes socially considered as "good" towards his wife - even although those attitudes are sexist - they tend to justify sexual violence within the couple and to exonerate the man (as they consider that he is entitled to have sexual relations with his wife) and to blame the woman (as they consider that it is a woman's duty to sexually satisfy her husband). "

Go here to read more

REM sleep and genital arousal

Great podcast from the Kinsey Confidential website. It discusses arousal & blood flow during deep sleep based on the question "Do women experience nocturnal erections similar to mens"

Some good information in here you might want to bring up with the clients you work with.

FRESH course

The SHineSA FRESH course commences very soon for 2011 . ( the first intake is March 21st)

The FRESH course ( Freedom to Explore Sexual Health) is a nationally recognised course for workers in the Community Services and Health sectors working in the areas of Disability, Youth Work, Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander Men’s and Women’s Health, and Culturally & Linguistically Diverse communities.

This course aims to provide workers with an increased level of confidence and skill when working with clients in the area of sexual and reproductive health and relationships education. Participants will enhance their skills in addressing clients’ needs through assessment, program development, delivery and evaluation.

The FRESH course has a flexible design which enables participants from the same occupational groups to share time together exploring client issues and community needs. Participants can complete the core modules, then may choose electives and assessment pathways based on individual preference.

To find out dates and more about the course visit the ShineSA website here

Second national survey of the health and wellbeing of GLBT Australians announced.

Private Lives 2 is an on-line survey of the health and wellbeing of gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender Australians. Carried out by Gay and Lesbian Health Victoria in partnership with the Australian Research Centre in Sex, Health and Society, La Trobe University Private Lives 2 aims to be the largest and most comprehensive assessment of the health of Australian GLBT communities to date.

The first Private Lives survey was conducted in 2005 and involved over 5,000 participants. The results of the survey have had a major impact on improvements in health and community services for GLBT people across the country.

Private Lives 2 will revisit many of the questions used in the original survey to see if and how things have changed for GLBT people. It will include questions on physical and mental health and wellbeing, use of health services, alcohol and drug use, the impact of legislative reforms, including recognition of same sex relationships, GLBTI people’s experiences of discrimination and their connections to family, friends and community. The survey will have a greater emphasis on GLBT mental health and depression and will include questions looking at the impact of social connection, including the use of the Internet, on GLBT people’s wellbeing.

Participating in Private Lives 2 is as simple as accepting an invitation:

Be part of an online survey on the health and wellbeing of the GLBT community in Australia. If you are over 16 years of age and identify as gay, lesbian, bisexual, or transgender, go to www.privatelivessurvey.org.au .

Like its predecessor, the success of Private Lives 2 depends on GLBT people completing the survey. It takes just 20 mins to complete, but that 20 mins is vital for the ongoing improvement in the quality of services provided to GLBT people across Australia.

Contact Sunil Patel 03 9285 5278 sunil.patel@latrobe.edu.au