The proposed research examines the nature of information that parents would communicate to their teenage children in trying to convince them to avoid premarital pregnancies. Parents can have three orientations to the problem, (1) discouraging the teenager from engaging in premarital sexual intercourse (PSI), (2) not discouraging PSI, but encouraging the use of effective birth control, or (3) a blending of the above such that PSI is discouraged, but the teenager is encouraged to use birth control should PSI occur. The nature of the information the parent will convey is analyzed in terms of a communication-persuasion paradigm. In addition, the receptivity of the parents to participating in education programs designed to increase parent-teenager communication will be assessed. A survey of teenage parents will be conducted using a 2X2 factorial design (sex of the parent by sex of the teenage son/daughter). The results will provide insights into the capabilities of parents as sex educators from the perspective of preventing premarital pregnancies in teenagers. In addition, they will reveal features of the communication process that occur between parents and teenagers that could be improved or emphasized in parent education programs. Finally, the data will suggest potential obstacles that may confront the implementation of parent education programs.
