Relationship of Type of Sex Education on Sexual Behavior and Perceptions of Shame and Guilt in Young Adults

The purpose was to examine the influence of type of sex education on sexual behavior and perceptions of shame and guilt in young adults. This study asked, what is the extent of the relationship, if any, between gender, religious affiliation, type of sex education, personal knowledge gained through sex education, sexual behavior and perceptions of shame and guilt in young adult college students? Convenience sampling was used to target young adults ages 18 "“ 24 years in the correlational design. A total sample of 93 complete surveys were collected. Multiple regression with 5 predictors was the planned analysis. An anonymous electronic survey was distributed through various social media platforms. Mean of scale was used to replace data in participants missing less than two answers. However, participants with large amounts of missing data were excluded in the analysis. Bivariate analysis of the between the predictors and shame and guilt scales were not significant in four predictors. The only significant relationship was between risky sexual behavior and shame and guilt. Results indicated that gender, religious affiliation, type of sex education, personal knowledge gained through sex education did not predict perceptions of shame and guilt. However, risky sexual behavior and shame and guilt demonstrated a positive correlation. Limitation included length of survey, inability to clearly distinguish between shame and guilt, and sexual behavior questions were focused on condom use.