The Prevalence of Sexual Abstinence and Its Predictors in American University Students: A School-Based Cross-sectional Study

Abstinence can be a healthy approach for adolescents to prevent risky sexual behaviors. Understanding the pattern of sexual behaviors and the related factors of sexual decision-making is essential for an effective educational program for college students. This study was performed to determine the prevalence of sexual abstinence and its associated factors among American university students.

In this study, 808 university students from different countries attending Central Michigan University (CMU) in the United States of America were recruited in 2018-2019. In this cross-sectional survey, the students were randomly selected and invited by email to participate in the study. A self-administered questionnaire extracted from World Health Organization (WHO) questionnaire on sexual health was used for data collection through Qualtrics software. Statistical analysis was done using IBM SPSS software.

The mean age of the participants was 23.87±7.56 years. The prevalence of sexual abstinence was 14.9%. The prevalence of sexual abstinence was significantly different among females and males (P<0.05). Fears of pregnancy (37.5%) and HIV/AIDS or other sexually transmitted diseases (32.8%) were the common reasons for not having sex. Income was also significantly associated with sexual abstinence in university students (P<0.01).

Overall, the prevalence of sexual abstinence was low in American university students. Comprehensive sex education should be considered as precedence in this population, particularly among the younger university students.