Counseling in Human Sexuality

Exposure to sex , education about it , and efforts to restrict the sexually curiosity of children and adolescents vary widely around the world . At one extreme are a number of Middle Eastern peoples , who are known to kill girls who lose their virginity before marriage . At the other extreme are several Asian and Pacific Island groups with very permissive sexual attitudes and practices . But despite the publicity granted to the image of a sexually free adolescent , sexual attitudes in the United States are relatively restrictive . Typically , American parents give children little information about

sex they seek information from friends , books , magazines , movies and television . On prime-time television shows , which adolescents watch the most , sex between partners with little commitment to each other occurs often Characters are rarely shown taking steps to avoid pregnancy or sexually transmitted disease (Ward , 1995 . Sex education in the schools is becoming more widespread , although the curricula of individual school districts vary widely . coverage will vary depending on the child 's developmental level but will typically include sexual anatomy reproduction and pregnancy , family planning , and sexually transmitted diseases . Factual information provided in such sex education curricula much like information provided in college textbooks , like this , can provide an important base of knowledge for informed sexual decision making . A key component of sexual adjustment is a personal system of values that guides sexual decision making . A personal system of values contains relatively specific implications for what is right and what is wrong when it comes to sexual...