Young people have good knowledge of HIV/AIDS but know less about chlamydia and other STIs, which pose more of a risk for this group. They get most of their knowledge from school programs and from discussions with their mothers.
While there’s no direct relationship between knowledge and behaviour - a person may know that cigarettes are harmful but choose to smoke anyway - evaluations of school programs show that young people who have had sex education are more likely to delay sexual intercourse and to have it safely when the time comes. The bulk of the information in this article was taken from the 2002 results of the third National Survey of Australian Secondary Students, HIV/AIDS and Sexual Health, carried out by The Australian Research Centre in Sex, Health and Society and funded by the Commonwealth Department of Health and Ageing.
Information sources
The information sources young people use and trust to find out about sexual issues depend on the topic, but include:
School programs
Teachers
Mothers
Other female students
Doctors.
School programs are the most used. Mothers are also popular, while doctors are trusted but not well used. Young people don’t trust the media as an information source on sexual issues.
Condom use
Most Australian teenagers don’t practise safe sex. Some of the commonly reported reasons for not using a condom include knowing their partner’s sexual history (35.2%), trust in their partner (33.3%) and having unplanned sex (33.1%). Over 18% of young people don’t use condoms because either they don’t like them (30.5% of males, 16.5% of females) or their partner doesn’t like them (24.6% of males, 15.3% of females). However, about three quarters of young people believe that most or all of young people around the same age who are sexually active use condoms.
HIV/AIDS
Australian teenagers are generally well informed about HIV transmission. Selected statistics include:
Young people know that intravenous drug use can transmit the HIV virus (97.4%), that women can be infected from heterosexual intercourse (95.4%), and that men can be infected from homosexual intercourse (87.4%).
Young people know that the HIV virus can’t be transmitted by hugging (97.8%), or through coughs and sneezes (86.9%).
Young people know that condoms offer protection against HIV transmission (89%) while the oral contraceptive pill doesn’t (89.8%).
About one quarter of young people don’t know that a pregnant woman infected with the HIV virus can pass the infection on to her unborn baby.
Sexually transmissible infections
Australian teenagers aren’t very well informed about sexually transmissible infections (STIs) other than HIV/AIDS. Chlamydia is the most common STI among young Australians, with 15,400 new cases diagnosed in 2001. Selected statistics on young people’s knowledge of STIs include:
Many young people believe that all STIs apart from HIV can be cured (61.6%).
Only one in five teenagers know that chlamydia can infect men as well as women.
Only 36% of teenagers know that chlamydia can lead to infertility in women.
42% of teenagers believe that genital warts can only be spread by sexual intercourse.
Young men are less informed than young women about STIs.
Less than one in 10 young people consider themselves at risk of infection with hepatitis B, hepatitis C, an STI or HIV.
Attitudes
Most young Australians are not prejudiced towards gay men, lesbians and people living with HIV/AIDS. Selected statistics include:
87% of young people state they would remain friends with a person if the person got HIV.
79% believe that HIV-positive students should be allowed to continue attending school.
Around three quarters of young people wouldn’t end a friendship if their friend was lesbian or gay.
Female teenagers are more accepting than male teenagers of gay men and lesbians.
Marriage and parenthood
The Australian Temperament Project (ATP) is a study tracking individual development from infancy to adulthood. This study includes the views and hopes of Australian young people aged 17 to 18 years on marriage and parenthood. Selected statistics include:
55% of young people hope to be married within the next six to 10 years.
18% of young people haven’t yet given parenthood a thought.
About one third hope to become a parent within the next six to 10 (or more) years.
About 5% wish to remain childless.
Young men show a general desire to marry and have children at a later age than young women.
Most young people don’t want to have a child within the next five years. Of those that do, more young people from rural and regional areas want to start a family soon (5% and 7%) than do young people from the city (1%).
Generally, young people from higher socioeconomic backgrounds are more likely to want parenthood later (in 11 years or more), while those from lower socioeconomic backgrounds are more likely to want parenthood sooner (within the next six to 10 years).
94% of young people want to have two or more children.
While there’s no direct relationship between knowledge and behaviour - a person may know that cigarettes are harmful but choose to smoke anyway - evaluations of school programs show that young people who have had sex education are more likely to delay sexual intercourse and to have it safely when the time comes. The bulk of the information in this article was taken from the 2002 results of the third National Survey of Australian Secondary Students, HIV/AIDS and Sexual Health, carried out by The Australian Research Centre in Sex, Health and Society and funded by the Commonwealth Department of Health and Ageing.
Information sources
The information sources young people use and trust to find out about sexual issues depend on the topic, but include:
School programs
Teachers
Mothers
Other female students
Doctors.
School programs are the most used. Mothers are also popular, while doctors are trusted but not well used. Young people don’t trust the media as an information source on sexual issues.
Condom use
Most Australian teenagers don’t practise safe sex. Some of the commonly reported reasons for not using a condom include knowing their partner’s sexual history (35.2%), trust in their partner (33.3%) and having unplanned sex (33.1%). Over 18% of young people don’t use condoms because either they don’t like them (30.5% of males, 16.5% of females) or their partner doesn’t like them (24.6% of males, 15.3% of females). However, about three quarters of young people believe that most or all of young people around the same age who are sexually active use condoms.
HIV/AIDS
Australian teenagers are generally well informed about HIV transmission. Selected statistics include:
Young people know that intravenous drug use can transmit the HIV virus (97.4%), that women can be infected from heterosexual intercourse (95.4%), and that men can be infected from homosexual intercourse (87.4%).
Young people know that the HIV virus can’t be transmitted by hugging (97.8%), or through coughs and sneezes (86.9%).
Young people know that condoms offer protection against HIV transmission (89%) while the oral contraceptive pill doesn’t (89.8%).
About one quarter of young people don’t know that a pregnant woman infected with the HIV virus can pass the infection on to her unborn baby.
Sexually transmissible infections
Australian teenagers aren’t very well informed about sexually transmissible infections (STIs) other than HIV/AIDS. Chlamydia is the most common STI among young Australians, with 15,400 new cases diagnosed in 2001. Selected statistics on young people’s knowledge of STIs include:
Many young people believe that all STIs apart from HIV can be cured (61.6%).
Only one in five teenagers know that chlamydia can infect men as well as women.
Only 36% of teenagers know that chlamydia can lead to infertility in women.
42% of teenagers believe that genital warts can only be spread by sexual intercourse.
Young men are less informed than young women about STIs.
Less than one in 10 young people consider themselves at risk of infection with hepatitis B, hepatitis C, an STI or HIV.
Attitudes
Most young Australians are not prejudiced towards gay men, lesbians and people living with HIV/AIDS. Selected statistics include:
87% of young people state they would remain friends with a person if the person got HIV.
79% believe that HIV-positive students should be allowed to continue attending school.
Around three quarters of young people wouldn’t end a friendship if their friend was lesbian or gay.
Female teenagers are more accepting than male teenagers of gay men and lesbians.
Marriage and parenthood
The Australian Temperament Project (ATP) is a study tracking individual development from infancy to adulthood. This study includes the views and hopes of Australian young people aged 17 to 18 years on marriage and parenthood. Selected statistics include:
55% of young people hope to be married within the next six to 10 years.
18% of young people haven’t yet given parenthood a thought.
About one third hope to become a parent within the next six to 10 (or more) years.
About 5% wish to remain childless.
Young men show a general desire to marry and have children at a later age than young women.
Most young people don’t want to have a child within the next five years. Of those that do, more young people from rural and regional areas want to start a family soon (5% and 7%) than do young people from the city (1%).
Generally, young people from higher socioeconomic backgrounds are more likely to want parenthood later (in 11 years or more), while those from lower socioeconomic backgrounds are more likely to want parenthood sooner (within the next six to 10 years).
94% of young people want to have two or more children.
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