Social Work Faculty Publications

Evaluating a Comprehensive Abstinence-Based Program for Minority Youth: Comparing Church and Public School Outcomes

Document Type

Article

Publication Date

Spring 2010

Journal Title

Social Work and Christianity

ISSN

0737-5778

Volume

37

Issue

1

First Page

28

Last Page

44

Abstract

This article compares initial outcomes of a 9-hour federally funded comprehensive abstinence-based program delivered to minority youth at churches and public schools in Miami, Florida. Using a nonequivalent control group design, repeated measures MANOVA compared an unduplicated sample of 620 youth completing the program in churches (n=248) and in public school settings (n=372). Although the findings offer initial evidence in support of delivering the program to minority youth at both settings, youth at churches scored higher on every measure congruent with choosing abstinence until marriage. Similar percentages of youth in both settings, however, reported having sexual intercourse. Discussion of the findings, as well as implications for social work practice and the church, conclude the article.

Keywords

Church, Hispanic, pregnancy, sex, teen, youth

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