Using data from 2002 to 2013 collections of the National Survey of Family Growth, we explored how exposure and timing of sex education were associated with sexual health outcomes of 5,141 women between the ages of 15 and 20 years. Consistent with previous literature, sexual minority (e.g., lesbian and bisexual) women reported engaging in sexual…

Given the lack of citizen or medical support for abstinence-only education, we ask how abstinence-education maintains such a stronghold in America and other Western democracies' public policy and consciousness. Our response has three parts. In the first, we outline the disproportionately negative health outcomes of sex education experienced by…

"Abstinence-only" sex education, which is still widely used across the United States, does not prepare students to engage in healthy adult relationships. Prior research evidence indicates that abstinence-only education is less effective at preventing pregnancy and sexually transmitted infections (STIs) than comprehensive sex education.…

Cass's Homosexual Identity Formation Model (1979) is one of the most well-known and well-referenced models of identity development for gay males and lesbians. This article provides a review of Cass's six steps of the model, as well as research support for and critiques of the model. As the model was developed more than 30 years ago, the…

This report primarily responds to the content of the Articles 10 and 12 regarding gender equity education in the governmental report made by the Taiwanese government in 2014 for CEDAW. In order to observe the obstacles and challenges facing gender equity education in our nation today, this report focuses on three aspects: gender diversity…

It has long been noted that sexuality education curricula contain gender stereotypes and heterosexism that may be harmful to people of all genders. Many of the stereotypes and sources of heterosexism that have been discussed in the literature have to do with old-fashioned and restrictive roles for men and women and focus on heterosexual sex and…

As teachers who use both our theoretical (academic) and practical (empirical) knowledge to entice our students to peer outside of the seemingly clear-cut boxes of the two-and-only-two dichotomies of sex, gender, and sexuality, we attempt to problematize not only sexuality categories but also gender categories (specifically, the category "woman").…

This article aims to address concerns about schools as locations where students grapple, materially and subjectively, with class-based notions of femininity, the promotion of heterosexuality and the support of hetero-normative, middle-class families against, and in contrast with, their own working-class families, identities and experiences. Two…

Orgasm is often seen as the most sensational aspect of sex, and, seemingly, it never ceases to fascinate. The female and the male orgasm hold different positions in research as well as in public debate, and the orgasm has been object of discussion within the feminist movement. This article is about sex and especially the female orgasm related to…

Developmental and educational researchers have overlooked the development of sexual orientation among adolescents and youth, even as they study sexual development and identity development during adolescence. This paper examines some conceptual, practical, and ethical considerations involved in conducting research on lesbian, gay, and bisexual…

Low-libido disorders are highly prevalent, may be extremely distressful to patients and their partners, and influence the course and prognosis of therapy. This paper focuses on this important aspect of human sexuality. Some clinical features of hypoactive sexual desire are described, and some hypotheses about etiology and prognosis are presented.…

Three years after the first efforts to teach college students about Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS) began, established campus AIDS-education programs are grappling at increasingly sophisticated levels with old and new challenges, including homophobia, blood testing, women's role, and students' reluctance to admit they are putting…

The impact of homophobia on health education practice has received little attention until recently. As a profession, health educators have not yet adequately addressed lesbian and gay health issues. This paper defines homophobia and discusses the consequences of homophobia in health education and implications for practice. The health education…

Uses data from an evaluation of a high school sexuality education program to examine gender relations and production of difference. Participating schools incorporated teaching and learning that normalized sexual diversity and explored HIV-related discrimination and homophobia. Discussion of gender, power, and menstruation and heterosexism and…