No More Birds and Bees: A Process Approach to Parent-Child Sexual Communication

In this chapter, we present conjoined models of parent-child sexual communication. These models rely on communication privacy management theory to show how sexual information is contained within individual privacy boundaries and shared when a question is asked. Information is revealed in little bits and pieces over the course of a child’s development. Privacy boundary permeability opens, and the circumference of privacy boundaries expands over time. During a specific interaction, parents and children regulate how much information they share. These models apply to parent-child relationships where sexual communication is accomplished, recognizing that many parents and children never or rarely talk about sex.