Vietnamese undergraduate students’ perspectives on sexual knowledge, attitudes, and risky sexual behavior

Human sexual behavior research is a multidisciplinary endeavor that seeks to comprehend one of the most vital and complex aspects of our behavioral science. This study aimed to investigate Vietnamese university students' perception of sexual knowledge as well as the relationship between gender, academic year, and sexual orientation. The questionnaire was sent to 666 Vietnamese undergraduate students in four universities which 418 respondents were considered valid for research purposes. The study results showed that there was a significant difference among the four study groups of different (1) academic year; (2) sexual orientations; (3) gender and academic year level; (4) academic year and sexual orientation; (5) gender, academic year, and sexual orientation level when considered jointly on the variables of the three aspects of the Sex knowledge and Attitude Questionnaire II. However, there was no reciprocal relationship between (6) gender; (7) gender, and sexual orientation level. The findings of this study will have implications for school policies that attempt to promote and maintain a positive school climate in an effort to address the issue of sexuality education, including sexual knowledge.

The effect of sexual counseling on depression, anxiety, stress, sexual knowledge and sexual quality of life in men who have undergone invasive coronary interventions: An RCT

Background: Sexual dysfunctions are common in men with ischemic heart disease, especially in men undergoing therapeutic interventions. Objective: This study intended to assess the effect of counseling on depression, anxiety, stress, sexual knowledge and sexual quality of life in men after invasive coronary interventions in the post catheterization department of Kashan Shahid Beheshti Hospital during 2018. Materials and Methods: The study population consisted of 54 male participants who had undergone an invasive coronary intervention. The intervention group received counseling and the control group underwent the standard ward routine. Data were collected using the depression anxiety stress scales, Abraham’s sexual quality of life, and the Yi-Hung Sexual Knowledge questionnaires before discharge and also two months later. Results: Within two months, the intervention group’s mean score of sexual knowledge significantly increased, compared with the control group, from 12.37 to 14.81 (p ≤ 0.001). The intervention group’s mean score of sexual quality of life also significantly increased, compared with the control group, from 48.2 to 60.7 (p ≤ 0.001). Moreover, the mean anxiety score changed in the intervention group from 11.18 to 5.25, again a significant difference compared with the control group (p = 0.01). But, the differences in the depression and stress scores were not significant. Conclusion: Our findings suggest that sexual counseling may improve sexual knowledge, sexual quality of life and anxiety in men following invasive coronary intervention, but might not reduce their stress or depression. Further studies are needed to confirm these findings. Key words: Percutaneous transluminal coronary angioplasty, Coronary artery bypass graft, Life quality, Depression, Anxiety neuroses, Sex counseling.

Modern European sexological and orientalist assimilations of medieval Islamicate ‘ilm al-bah to erotology

This article discusses the term erotology, which was applied to medieval Islamicate ‘ilm al-bah (the science of coitus), as well as other world traditions of sexual knowledge, by European sexologists of the late 19th and early 20th centuries, who contrasted it with their own forms of inquiry into sexual matters in the modern field of sexual science. It argues that the homogenisation and minimisation of all ancient and non-European forms of medical knowledge about sex, even one as substantial as the ‘ilm al-bah tradition, supported a particular story about the origins of sexology's own emergence as a new and unprecedented biomedical and scientific way of knowing, characterised by an opposition assumed between sexuality and religion, by a view of sexual variations as perversions or pathologies, and by a view of Arabs and Muslims as sexually excessive. The article focusses on French, English, German, Austrian, and Italian sources of the 19th century that discussed the history of sexual medicine, relating these accounts to recent attempts to historicise sexology. It considers how forms of colonial hierarchy and exoticist views of non-European cultures impacted the dismissal of ‘ilm al-bah among European sexual scientists and how they may continue to exert an influence on forms of modern historical inquiry that are not attentive to scholarship on medieval Islamicate sexual medicine.

Effect of training program on sexual knowledge and social skills of adolescents with high-functioning autism in puberty

Purpose Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) refers to a group of complex neurodevelopmental disorders characterized by repetitive and characteristic patterns of behavior and difficulties with social communication and interaction. Puberty is an important period for teenagers with ASD. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of educational program on increasing social skills (SS) and sexual knowledge (SK) in adolescent boys with high-functioning autism (HFA) disorder. Design/methodology/approach This study was conducted using a single-subject design. Participants were three boys diagnosed with HFA disorder, selected using purposive sampling. The social skills improvement system scale and the sexual knowledge questionnaire were used to measure SS and SK. The training program consisted of 49 sessions. Findings Results showed that, given the comparison of scores before and after the intervention, the training program was effective in improving SS and SK. Originality/value With regard to the importance of puberty, training programs for parents and adolescents play an effective role in increasing SS and SK of adolescents with HFA disorder.

Sexual Knowledge and Teenage Pregnancy Among Female Hawkers in Ekiti State, Nigeria

Background: This study investigated patterns of Sexual Knowledge and teenage pregnancy among female hawkers in Ekiti State, Nigeria. Method: The study population consisted of female adolescents aged 8-19 years. The samples 113 girls were drawn for the study. Two pregnant girls were interviewed. The sampling technique used was the purposive sampling. The hypotheses were tested at calculated value of 0.000 level of significance for validity. The hypotheses were analysed based on the Pearson chi-square test version of the SPSS. The data generated were analysed using frequency count and percentage for describing the data. The chi-square statistics as well as the in-depth interview were used to make inferences about the data. Findings: It was found that teenage hawkers have experienced one form of sexual activity while hawking including unwanted touching (sexual harassment), sexual intercourse, rape, sexual abuse and unwanted pregnancy. Conclusion: Based on these findings, it was recommended that skills and training need to be provided in and outside the school system. Parent, teachers and counsellors should convey abstinence and prevention messages so as to sensitize or discourage early sexual activity and teenage pregnancy of female hawkers. A poverty alleviation programme should also be put in place at the local level to reduce this form of child labour. Protective child right policy should be intensified to reduce child labour in the society.

Application of a Longitudinal IRTree Model: Response Style Changes Over Time

Traditional psychometric models focus on studying observed categorical item responses, but these models often oversimplify the respondent cognitive response process, assuming responses are driven by a single substantive trait. A further weakness is that analysis of ordinal responses has been primarily limited to a single substantive trait at one time point. This study applies a significant expansion of this modeling framework to account for complex response processes across multiple waves of data collection using the item response tree (IRTree) framework. This study applies a novel model, the longitudinal IRTree, for response processes in longitudinal studies, and investigates whether the response style changes are proportional to changes in the substantive trait of interest. To do so, we present an empirical example using a six-item sexual knowledge scale from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent to Adult Health across two waves of data collection. Results show an increase in sexual knowledge from the first wave to the second wave and a decrease in midpoint and extreme response styles. Model validation revealed failure to account for response style can bias estimation of substantive trait growth. The longitudinal IRTree model captures midpoint and extreme response style, as well as the trait of interest, at both waves.

Effects of an Internet-Based and Teacher-Facilitated Sexuality Education Package: A Cluster-Randomized Trial

Background: This study aimed to evaluate the effects of an internet-based and teacher-facilitated sexuality education package on the sexual knowledge and attitudes of Chinese adolescents. Methods: Six middle schools where no sexuality education had been performed with a total of 501 adolescent students (245 males and 256 females) were included in the trial. In total, 14 classes were randomly assigned to the intervention (internet-based sexuality education package) or the control group (classes were conducted as per normal). Students’ sexual knowledge and attitudes were assessed at the baseline, at the end of the intervention, and 12 months after the intervention. Generalized linear models were employed to assess the effects of the intervention. Results: Positive effects of the intervention were observed on sexual knowledge (β = 4.65, 95% CI: 4.12—5.17) and attitudes (β = 1.25, 95% CI: 1.00—1.50) at the end of the intervention. After 12 months, the effects sustained but the magnitude declined for sexual knowledge (β = 2.39, 95% CI: 1.85—2.93) and attitudes (β = 0.49, 95% CI: 0.23—0.75). There were no significant differences between male and female students. Conclusions: Although further modifications are required, the sexuality education package can increase the accessibility of comprehensive sexuality education to adolescents in rural areas in China.

Characteristics of Sexual Behavior in Blind Males: a Cross-sectional Survey

Objective: To investigate access to sexual knowledge, understanding of the sexual partners' beauty and sexual arousal in blind males and analyze the factors affecting them.Methods: A total of 54 blind males were conducted a face-to-face interview survey and questionnaire by the trained investigators. Results: The sound of mobile phones accounted for 51.9% of access to sexual knowledge, radio for 27.8%, the sound of television for 35.2%, and peer communication for 48.1%. The gentle and pleasant voice (64.8%) was most frequent on understanding of the sexual partners' beauty, followed by sexy and stylish figure (55.5%), fine and smooth skin (51.9%) and attractive body fragrance (18.5%). The results on the stimulation of sexual arousal showed that hearing gentle and pleasant sounds accounted for 40.7%, touching delicate and smooth skin for 44.4%, touching sexy and stylish figure for 53.7%, and pleasant mood for 22.2%. Conclusion: Blind males lack formal and systematic sex education in Ganzhou. And the understanding of the sexual partners' beauty mainly includes hearing, touch and smell. The stimulation of sexual arousal is mainly reflected in sound and touch, and pleasant mood also has a certain impact.

Reactions of non-abused children aged 3–9 years to the Sexual Knowledge Picture Instrument: an interview-based study

BackgroundThe Sexual Knowledge Picture Instrument (SKPI) is a child-friendly picture book that was developed as a diagnostic tool for sexual abuse in young children and is currently being validated. The aim of the current study was to explore the verbal and non-verbal reactions of non-abused Dutch children, aged 3–9 years, to the SKPI and to assess differences in reactions between genders and age groups.Methods and analysisSubject recruitment took place at preschools and primary schools. All children underwent a recorded video semi-structured interview with the SKPI. Interview recordings were scored by an independent rater who used scoring lists for verbal and non-verbal reactions. Non-parametric tests were used in statistical analyses.ResultsOf the 90 children (median age 5 years) participating in the study, most correctly named the genitals and their non-sexual functions. Only 34 showed an understanding of the picture depicting adult sexuality, with just one child describing a sexual function. Girls (n=45) gave more correct answers (median 87%) than boys (n=45, median 78%; p=0.006). Giggling was the most frequently observed non-verbal reaction, with a total of 186 instances in 54 children.ConclusionNon-abused children up to 9 years of age showed only limited knowledge of the sexual function of the genitals and hardly any insight into adult sexuality.