Conservative Sexual Values: Effects of an Abstinence Program on Student Attitudes

Conservative values often involve the view that sex should be more subject to self-control than is typically the case. An application of this view is the attempt to teach students to refrain from premarital sexual intercourse. Data are analyzed from an abstinence program taught to 1800 students in four states, in grades 7–10. Will students be influenced by an abstinence program? The results suggest that students did develop conservative attitudes toward sex, as indicated by their increases in agreement with conservative values on four areas of sexual behavior. However, we do not know if this agreement actually affects behavior.