Topics In Brief

All Topics In Brief
	Abstinence Adolescent Development Advances In Reproductive Health Building Resiliency Through Culture Changing Social Norms Child Sexual Abuse Communities of Faith and Teen Pregnancy Prevention Condoms Contraception Educating Youth With Developmental Disabilities Emergency Contraception (EC) Friendship Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, Transgender and Questioning Youth Girls' Development Health Belief Model Impact of Alcohol and Drug Use on Adolescents Male Involvement Managing Controversy Media Literacy Parent-Child Connectedness Parent-Child Connectedness: Bridging Research and Intervention Design Parent/Teen Communication Peer Education Positive Sexuality Pregnancy Options Pregnancy Prevention Program Evaluation Basics Promoting a Healthy Body Image Puberty Racial and Ethnic Disparities in Adolescent Reproductive Health Self Esteem Sexual Assault Sexually Transmitted Infections Social Learning Theory Teens and Older Partners Using Research to Improve Practice Wait for Sex Working with Preteens Working with Young Children (K-3) Youth Development Youth Mentoring

Teens and Older Partners

This edition of ReCAPP addresses the issue of teens with older partners. Most of the information on this topic was contributed by Michael Males, Ph.D., a professor of Sociology at the University of California, Santa Cruz, and author of several books and numerous articles on teen sexuality.

Authored Paper

You will find Dr. Males' comprehensive and informative paper "Teens and Older Partners" under Current Research. In this paper, Dr. Males cites numerous studies and statistics to illustrate the fact that older adult partners are a crucial variable in what is called "teen" sexuality and childbearing. He goes on to discuss the issue from historical, socio-economic, and ethnic perspectives. He also examines the reasons why teens date and sometimes marry older partners as well as the consequences of that behavior. Numerous books, fact sheets, and articles are included as references at the end of the paper.

Specifically, the paper includes the following sections:

An Introduction to the issue of teens and older partners
"Teenage" Pregnancy and Childbearing: An Accurate Description?
Historical Context
Partner Age Gaps
Who are the Fathers?
Teen Fathers and Older Partners
Why Do Teens Date Older Partners?
Consequences of Teens Dating Older Partners
Teens Marrying Older Partners
Programs and Policies
Conclusion, and
References

Journal Summary

A summary of a journal article entitled "Older Boyfriends and Girlfriends Increase Risk of Sexual Initiation in Young Adolescents" provides further data to support the premise that the age of partners is an important factor in the teen pregnancy prevention equation, one which needs to be addressed in interventions.

Learning Activity

This month's Learning Activity entitled "What's Your Advice? Adult Male — Teen Female Relationships" encourages youth to evaluate and advise on relationships between teens and adults. It is reprinted from the curriculum Unequal Partners: Teaching About Power and Consent in Adult-Teen and Other Relationships developed by Planned Parenthood of Greater Northern New Jersey, Inc.