News | Sunday, 02 August 2009

PRINT THIS ARTICLE

Sex on campus – 60% sexually active, study shows

James Debono
Sex is “natural… and part of the behaviour of both humans and animals”, say students at the University of Malta, 60% of which are sexually active, a sociology dissertation reveals.
Hundreds students from five faculties, including the Faculty of Theology, were interviewed by sociology graduate Jessica Camilleri, who also found 5% of students had had over six sexual partners in their lives.
The sample of the study included 10 male and 10 female students from the faculties of medicines, theology, law, arts, and education.
“Although there is disagreement about the introduction of a condom vending machine, the need is there,” Camilleri writes in her dissertation on the changes in values on sexuality on the Tal-Qroqq campus – which strangely remains devoid of a condom machine to this day.
Most respondents said they subscribed to the view that there was far more openness in discussing and expressing sexuality today than in the past, and greater acceptance of sexual activity as normal, healthy, and pleasurable.
One major change noted by the author is a greater acceptance of pre-marital or non-marital sex. Despite the greater acceptance of pre-marital sex, 83% of the respondents claimed to hold strong Roman Catholic beliefs; while 14% of the respondents claimed to be atheists.
Of the latter, 73% of unbelievers engage in pre-marital sex, while 57.6% of believers do likewise. Only a small proportion – 7.4% – did not agree with pre-marital sex, yet still practiced it.
HIV is the sexually transmitted disease most students are aware of (mentioned by 51.7% of respondents), followed by: Gonorrhoea (23.2%); Syphillis (10.6%), Hepatitis (8.6%). The least mentioned was Chlamydia trachomatis (6%) which is one of the most common sexual diseases.
Camilleri notes some respondents were not able to give any names of sexually transmitted diseases. “When one considers that some University students are not able to give two different names of sexually transmitted diseases, it is obvious that sexual education need to be improved.”
The majority (58.1%) said they had been made aware of STDs in school, while 20.2% said they got had learned of STDs from the media. Only 12.4% said they talked with their parents about sexual risks.
A large proportion (64.8%) who had sex between the ages of 12 and 18, had also made use of drugs. Only seven of those who had their first sexual intercourse in their teens did not make use of drugs.
On the other hand, none of respondents who had their first sexual intercourse between 19 and 25 made use of illegal substances.

Any comments?
If you wish your comments to be published in our Letters pages please click button below.
Please write a contact number and a postal address where you may be contacted.

All the interviews from Reporter on MaltaToday's YouTube channel.

EDITORIAL


No more platitudes on social security

INTERVIEW