Patterns and Outcomes of Mother‐Daughter Communication About Sexuality

Drawing from a sample survey of 449 black and white mother‐teenage daughter dyads, this study examines patterns, correlates, and consequences of direct verbal communication about sex between mother and daughter. Findings suggest that while mothers and daughters reported frequent discussions of sex‐related topics, they differed in terms of how comfortable they felt talking with each other, what roles each played in initiating discussions, and whether they desired more frequent discussions in the future. Higher frequencies of current communication were associated with more responsible patterns of daughters' sexual behavior. The authors suggest that future research be directed at determinants of parental involvement in sexual socialization, and at analyses of the underlying processes of parent‐child sexual communication.