There has been very little research that compares family communication about sex and relationships for sexual minority and heterosexual teenagers. The literature that does exist rarely includes fathers or extended family in the data.
In this study, the researchers surveyed 952 teenagers (115 of which disclosed non-heterosexual attraction). They found that mothers offered more messages about sexual protection methods to their non-sexual minority teens, and fathers talked less with sexual minority teens about risks of sex and relational sex. Male sexual minorities reported talking to more family and extended family members, while female and non-binary sexual minorities confided in fewer family members or no one.
This work was supported by the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development: R21HD088955. The content is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official views of the National Institutes of Health.
