Association of Virginity at Age 18 with Educational, Economic, Social, and Health Outcomes in Middle Adulthood
Reginald Finger, MD, MPH, Tonya Thelen, BS, John T.Vessey, PhD, Joanna K. Mohn, MD, Joshua R. Mann, MD, MPH
From 1979 through 2000 waves of the National Longitudinal Study of Youth (NLSY, 1979), we analyzed interview information on 3,750 men and 3,620 women to determine the impact of virginity at age 18 on educational, economic, social, and health outcomes in middle adulthood. Female virgins were more likely than non-virgins to have a positive financial net worth and less likely to use welfare benefits or to experience health problems. Virgins of both genders attained more education and were half as likely to experi*ence divorce. The findings were not due to avoiding teen pregnancy or teen fatherhood, and they persisted after controlling for ethnicity and measures of previous educational or economic disadvantage. Though the possibility of interference from unobserved variables cannot be entirely excluded, the strength, consistency, temporal direction, and plausibility of the associations suggest some causal effect. Possible explanations for the impact on divorce include the influence of pre-existing poor relationship skills as well as that of extramarital affairs. Encouraging teen sexual abstinence is expected to result in improved outcomes in middle adulthood.
Adolescent & Family Health, 2004, 3(4): p.164 - 170
Issue: 0304
Article ID: 030405