The Developmental and Relationship Contexts of Sexual Abstinence Among Adolescent

描述(由申请者提供)：节欲已成为减少青少年怀孕和性传播感染的主要方法，也是2010年健康人的目标。然而，目前的禁欲研究存在着不一致和方法上的困难。这项职业发展建议将提供候选技能，以提高我们对关系和社会背景如何影响青少年禁欲决定的理解，使用严格的理论和方法。最终目标是告知和改进预防意外怀孕和性传播感染的干预措施。应聘者是印第安纳大学的儿科医生和青少年医学专家，接受过行为研究方面的奖学金培训。培训阶段有5个目标：(1)促进对性禁欲作为一种健康行为的理论理解，包括个人、人际和社会背景的发展变化；(2)学习与青少年二人组工作中的理论和研究设计问题；(3)利用先进的分析技术发展纵向和重复测量数据的技能；(4)发展在青少年怀孕和性传播感染预防方面的计划评估和干预研究所需的技能；以及(5)增进候选人对青少年行为研究中伦理问题的理解。这些目标将通过正式的课程作业、定向学习活动和有指导的研究来实现。该研究计划有三项截然不同的研究。研究1是一项定性研究，从青少年的角度考察禁欲。研究2是对全国家庭成长调查中禁欲行为的分析，旨在获得具有全国代表性的估计数字。研究3是对禁欲的社会和关系背景进行的前瞻性、纵向研究，将允许检查之前的关系和背景问题。完成后，候选人将拥有技能和经验，成为一名独立的儿科科学家，准备促进我们对节欲在怀孕和性病预防中的作用的理解。

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): Abstinence has become a primary approach to reducing adolescent pregnancy and STIs, and is a goal of Health People 2010. However, current abstinence research is plagued by inconsistencies and methodological difficulties. This career development proposal will provide the candidate skills to advance our understanding of how relationship and social contexts influence adolescent abstinence decisions using a rigorous theoretical and methodological approach. The ultimate goal is to inform and improve interventions to prevent unintended pregnancy and STIs. The candidate is a pediatrician and adolescent medicine specialist at Indiana University with fellowship training in behavioral research. The training phase has 5 objectives: (1) to advance the theoretical understanding of sexual abstinence as a health behavior, including developmental changes in the individual, interpersonal, and social contexts; (2) to learn theoretical and research design issues in work with adolescent dyads; (3) to develop skills in longitudinal and repeated measures data using advanced analytic techniques; (4) to develop skills necessary for program evaluation and intervention research in adolescent pregnancy and STI prevention; and (5) to advance the candidate's understanding of ethical issues in behavioral research with adolescents. These objectives will be met through formal coursework, directed learning activities, and mentored research. The research plan has three distinct studies. Study 1, a qualitative study, examines abstinence from the adolescent perspective. Study 2, an analysis of abstinence behaviors in the National Survey of Family Growth, seeks to obtain nationally representative estimates. Study 3, a prospective, longitudinal study of the social and relationship contexts of abstinence, will allow an examination of antecedent relationship and contextual issues. Upon completion, the candidate will have the skills and experience to become an independent pediatric scientist poised to advance our understanding of the role of abstinence in pregnancy and STD prevention.