Intergenerational Associations in Sexual Onset: Mediating Influences of Parental and Peer Sexual Teasing and Youth Substance Use

The prospective intergenerational association between fathers’ age of onset of sexual intercourse and their son’s or daughter’s age of onset of oral sex or intercourse up to 30 years later was examined using survival analyses across child ages 11–12 to 17–18 years. Additionally, novel constructs of parental and peer sexual teasing (at ages 11–12 years) and the general risk factors of child substance use onset (alcohol and marijuana) prior to or concurrent with sexual onset were assessed as predictors of children’s sexual onset and mediators of intergenerational associations.

Hypotheses were tested using the Oregon Youth Study Three-Generational sample, including 100 fathers and 176 children (46% girls).

Univariate findings indicated that children were at risk for earlier sexual onset, provided their fathers had onset on sex at younger ages; in addition, child alcohol and marijuana onset and parental, but not peer, sexual teasing predicted earlier age of sexual onset for children. Multivariate findings indicated child alcohol onset fully mediated the intergenerational association in age of sexual onset, whereas parental teasing and child marijuana onset did not explain the association.

Findings of intergenerational associations in risk of sexual onset indicate that mechanisms of this association should be further examined. Substance use onset also confers risk for earlier child sexual onset, with alcohol use onset accounting for intergenerational associations; thus, substance use onset should be a prime target for prevention. Parental sexual teasing warrants further study as a mechanism related to possibly unintended encouragement of youth’s early sexual onset.