Having problems with message search?
It's the Holiday Season . . . do you know where your teenagers are?
Teens, sex, and the 'Santa Claus effect'
Study: December prime time for teen-agers to lose virginity
Tuesday, December 24, 2002 Posted: 8:52 AM EST (1352 GMT)
(AP) -- School's out for the holidays. Teens have got time on their hands -- and perhaps even a crackling fire to set the mood. What are they planning for vacation? Apparently, losing their virginity is high on the list, according to researchers who reviewed data from a federal health survey.
Study: December prime time for teen-agers to lose virginity
Tuesday, December 24, 2002 Posted: 8:52 AM EST (1352 GMT)
(AP) -- School's out for the holidays. Teens have got time on their hands -- and perhaps even a crackling fire to set the mood. What are they planning for vacation? Apparently, losing their virginity is high on the list, according to researchers who reviewed data from a federal health survey.
While June is the most common month for teens to have sex for the first time -- be it in a casual summer fling or steady relationship -- sociologists from Mississippi State University say many teens who are dating seriously choose December as the time to have sex for the first time.
"We call it the 'Santa Claus effect,'" says Martin Levin, lead author of the study, which is published in the current issue of the Journal of Marriage and Family.
The findings ring true to Becky Rose, a 19-year-old student at New York University.
She says it's partly the stress of final exams, followed by the holidays that make her "more emotional" during the holidays. "Everything you see on TV has people kissing under mistletoe and 'Buy her a diamond -- she'll love you!'" says Rose, who concedes that her summertime relationships have been of a more casual nature.
Dr. Mark Schuster calls the Mississippi State researchers' findings "a very useful window into seasonal variation in first sexual intercourse." "For some people, there's something romantic about snow on the ground and cuddling up by the fire," says Schuster, a pediatrician who studies teens and sexual behavior at UCLA.
He notes that teens are often less supervised during the holidays, since parents are "often running around buying gifts." Meanwhile, says Dr. Lynn Ponton, teens generally have more time on their hands.
"This is about kids having sex when they're not worried about school and work and other things," says Ponton, a professor of psychiatry at the University of California.
To fully understand what's behind the December teen sex phenomenon, the Mississippi State researchers plan more studies.
The above is not meant to be medical advice. Please read the attached Disclaimer, Etc.
Happy Holidays. Dr. Rehert
Offline 
Send Email