Family communication and the sexual behavior and attitudes of college students

Ninety-five college students and both of their parents completed questionnaires that measured sexual attitudes, sexual behavior, general family communication, and parent-child communication about sex. Generally, parents and children from high sexual communication families had sexual attitudes that were significantly correlated whereas those from low sexual communication families did not, although this relationship was not apparent for fathers and daughters. The quality of family communication seemed unrelated to the extent of family sexual discussions, although the parents' reports on the quality of general family communication was significantly related to sexual inexperience, particularly for males. Contraceptive use for females was significantly related to the extent of parent-child communication about sex reported by the student. General family communication as well as parent-child discussion about sex both seem important factors in the study of family impact on sexuality.Ph.D. in Psychology from the University of Georgia. Current research interest is parent-child communication about sex.