I stumbled into an interesting article in the New Yorker online about evangelicals and teenage sex.  It, predictably, had to bring up Sarah Palin and her daughter.  (It was written before the election.)  But it also delves into the fact that teenage evangelicals are sexually active to a higher degree than we would like to admit.  From the story…

But, according to Add Health data, evangelical teen-agers are more sexually active than Mormons, mainline Protestants, and Jews. On average, white evangelical Protestants make their “sexual début”—to use the festive term of social-science researchers—shortly after turning sixteen. Among major religious groups, only black Protestants begin having sex earlier.

What does make a difference in abstaining?  It could be something unexpected.

Some of these differences in sexual behavior come down to class and education. Regnerus and Carbone and Cahn all see a new and distinct “middle-class morality” taking shape among economically and socially advantaged families who are not social conservatives. In Regnerus’s survey, the teen-agers who espouse this new morality are tolerant of premarital sex (and of contraception and abortion) but are themselves cautious about pursuing it. Regnerus writes, “They are interested in remaining free from the burden of teenage pregnancy and the sorrows and embarrassments of sexually transmitted diseases. They perceive a bright future for themselves, one with college, advanced degrees, a career, and a family. Simply put, too much seems at stake. Sexual intercourse is not worth the risks. (Source)

What this story misses is that abstinence campaigns do seems to delay teenagers having sex, on average about 18 months.  (Source) We can celebrate a small step, can’t we?

Finally, another factor that may help with teenage abstinence…team sports.