Adolescent-Parent Communication as a Predictor of Adolescents’ Sexual Behaviours in Public Secondary Schools in Uasin Gishu County, Kenya

Abstract

Adolescents’ sexual behaviour is a major global concern, as it is associated with life-threatening consequences among young people in both developed and developing countries, including Kenya. The purpose of this study was to examine the predictive effect of adolescent-parent communication on adolescents’ sexual behaviours in public secondary schools in Uasin Gishu County, Kenya. The study set out two (2) objectives and consequently two (2) null hypotheses to guide it. The study adopted pragmatic world view, mixed research methods approach and sought theoretical guidance from the Problem Behaviour Theory (PBT). The target population was 27773 respondents comprising of form 2 and form 3 students from 187 public secondary schools in Uasin Gishu County. Using Sloven’s formulae, 394 students and 7 teacher counselors were purposefully selected to participate in the study. Adolescent-parent communication and adolescent sexual behaviour were assessed using adapted items from the Parent Child Relationship Scheme Scale (PCRSS 2014) and the Youth Risk Behaviour Survey Scale (YRBS) (CDC, 2014) respectively. Quantitative data was analysed using Pearson’s Product Moment Correlation and simple linear regression to establish the relationship and the predictive effect of adolescent-parental communication on adolescents’ sexual behaviours at p <. 05. Pearson correlation results showed a statistically significant negative relationship between adolescent parental communication and adolescents’ sexual behaviour r(318) = -.733, p < .001. Simple Linear regression results indicated that adolescents’ sexual behaviour was predicted by adolescent-parental communication t(318) = 19.196, p < .001 with R² = .537. Qualitative data from teacher-counselors was reported verbatim and corroborated the quantitative findings. Based on the Pearson’s coefficient (r) and coefficient of determination (R²), the two null hypotheses (H₀₁ & H₀₂) were rejected at p < .05. Regression analysis showed that adolescent-parent communication is a useful predictor of adolescents’ sexual behaviour t(19.196) in public secondary schools in Uasin Gishu County, Kenya. The study established a statistically significant relationship between adolescent-parent communication and adolescents’ sexual behaviour in public secondary schools in Uasin Gishu County, Kenya. This implies that improved communication between parents and adolescents is associated with reduced engagement in risky sexual behaviours among adolescents. The study recommends that Schools, in collaboration with the Ministry of Education and community stakeholders, should implement programs that sensitize and train parents on effective communication skills, particularly concerning sexual and reproductive health matters.