Introduction
With the plummet of age at first sexual intercourse as well as the increase in the
number of teens who are having sexual intercourse, teenage sexual behaviors have
become a very hot topic in the social sciences. There have been a number of studies
which focus on family structure as a predictor of first sexual intercourse among teens
(Miller & Bingham, 1989; Flewelling & Bauman, 1990; Hogan & Kitagawa, 1985). Many
studies have assessed the difference between single-parent families and two-parent
families in regards to the various outcomes of children from these two distinct family
types (Wu & Thomson, 2001; Astone & McLanahan, 1990; Wu & Martinson, 1993).
However, very few identify and/or examine the difference between single-mother
households and single father households (Downey & Powell, 1993; Risman 1986;
Meyer & Garsky, 1993; Mueller & Cooper, 1986) and of those that do there is no
consensus with regard to the difference.
There are mixed reviews in regards to the effects of single-mother families
versus single-father families. Some studies find that single-father families are better off
than single-mother families (Downey & Powell, 1993), some find that single-mother
families are better off than single-father families (Demuth & Brown), and some find no
difference in regards to outcome effects on children (Amato, 2000; Buchanan et al.,
1996). The differences which have been noted have often been attributed to mothers
being more nurturing in the case of single-mother families and in the case of single-
father families, to fathers being more educated and economically stable.
The intent of the present study is to examine the effects of single-mother
households versus single father-households on age at first sexual intercourse. This
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Convention