Race, Religion, and Adolescent Sexual Behavior

Mark Regnerus, University of Texas at Austin

A paradox in the area of adolescent sexual behavior involves the intersection of religion, race, and sex. African-American youth tend to be more religiously devout than white youth. They also – especially boys – are more likely to report having early intercourse and more sexual partners. Since religious involvement is typically associated with delayed sexual practice and fewer partners, what accounts for this anomaly? This study explores possible explanations for this paradox by evaluating a conceptual model about mediated and contingent religious effects on sexual behavior – effects that are thought to be subject to both personal attitudes about sex as well as school “climates” about normative sexual behavior – using data from the Add Health study, supplemented by both survey and in-person interview data from the National Study of Youth and Religion.