Dimensions
155 x 233 x 31mm
Do thirteen-year-old girls really give blow jobs? What do fifteen-year-old boys think about when they masturbate? How often do teenagers regret having sex? Do teenagers enjoy anal sex? What do they think of sex education?
Working as a consultant on films and television shows dealing with adolescent sexuality, Joan Sauers realised that adults make a lot of assumptions about what teenagers do and how they feel, but have absolutely no idea what they really get up to. In early 2006, she conducted an anonymous online survey to find out the answers to the above questions - and more.
Hundreds of Australian teenagers shared their secrets with her openly and honestly. Topics they discussed include: masturbation; sexual fantasies; sexual texting and chatroom liaisons; intimacy and relationships; sexual orientation and coming out; oral and anal sex; sex with multiple partners; contraception and protection against STIs; the media; pornography; drugs and alcohol; and coercion and sexual violence.
In 'The Sex Lives Of Australian Teenagers', Sauers provides a compassionate and non-judgemental analysis of the survey responses, looking at trends and drawing comparisons between girls and boys, younger teens and older teens, and those living in different parts of Australia. Individual responses form a significant part of the book, and the teenagers' authentic voices, shaped by their use of digital technology and mobile phones, are presented in their original, unedited form. Some of their stories are funny or poignant, others startling and disturbing. The book also includes a resource section teenagers and their parents can use to find information, help and support.
Sauers's ground-breaking study is sure to create controversy, but she hopes it will also create dialogue. It is only when teens can speak freely about their sexual experiences and learn about the experiences of others that they can develop healthy sexual attitudes.
This is a book that's desperately needed by parents, teachers, psychologists and counsellors, but most of all by teenagers themselves.
