Developing Open Communication About Sex with Youth.

The article presents information on developing open communication about sex with youth. The discussion methods used in a workshop on the Youth-Adult Communication on Values offered at Oregon State University in Corvallis, Oregon, in June,1965, were developed throughout years of practical experience with youth groups in a variety of settings-school and church had been found effective with the whole adolescent age spectrum from junior high through college. Teenagers are often overconfident about their ability to be open in a mixed group and may be reluctant to separate. The adult discussion leader will need to take the responsibility for providing this kind of structure. While peer groups are the main source of sex information for youth, there is rarely open communication past the junior high school years as the need to protect prestige or reputation tends to create a barrier, especially on topics such as masturbation and homosexuality. Both the immediate evaluation by workshop members and the one conducted by mail indicated that the experience had been very satisfying to both youth and adults. For many boys and girls, it had been their first opportunity to talk so freely in the presence of adults.