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Re-Examining the Evidence for School-Based Comprehensive Sex Education: A Global Research Review
Irene H Ericksen1, Stan E Weed2
1Senior Research Analyst, The Institute for Research & Evaluation, Salt Lake City, Utah, U.S.A.
Issues in Law & Medicine
|May 5, 2021
Summary
Global research on school-based comprehensive sex education (CSE) shows limited evidence of effectiveness. In the U.S., abstinence education (AE) demonstrated slightly better, though still limited, positive outcomes in studies.
Area of Science:
- Public Health
- Adolescent Health
- Program Evaluation
Background:
- Comprehensive sex education (CSE) is widely implemented in schools globally.
- Assessing the effectiveness of CSE programs is crucial for adolescent health outcomes.
- Rigorous evaluation is needed to identify evidence-based interventions.
Purpose of the Study:
- To evaluate global research on school-based CSE.
- To identify evidence of real program effectiveness using rigorous criteria.
- To assess outcomes of credible CSE and abstinence education (AE) studies.
Main Methods:
- Examined 120 school-based sex education studies from UN, U.S. TPPP, and CDC reviews.
- Included 60 U.S. CSE, 43 non-U.S. CSE, and 17 U.S. AE studies meeting scientific rigor.
- Evaluated for sustained positive impact (≥12 months) on key indicators without harmful effects.
Main Results:
- Globally, only 6 of 103 CSE studies showed sustained positive effects; 16 had harmful impacts.
- In the U.S., 3 of 60 CSE studies showed sustained positive effects; 7 had harmful impacts.
- In the U.S., 7 of 17 AE studies showed sustained positive effects; 1 had harmful effects.
Conclusions:
- Current rigorous school-based CSE studies show minimal evidence of effectiveness worldwide.
- Evidence for U.S. school-based abstinence education (AE) was limited but appeared somewhat better than CSE.
- Further research is needed to identify effective CSE programs.
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