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June 2004, Vol. 10, No. 2 Transitions to Adulthood The researchers analyzed data on premarital sex and reproductive behavior from a 1999 survey conducted in six provinces among more than 1,600 adolescent males and females aged 15–22. Young people included in the survey came from a range of urban and rural ecological and cultural zones in the south, north, and center of the country. Survey respondents were asked whether they had ever had sex and, if so, at what age they first did so. Only 10 percent of the 764 males and 5 percent of the 884 females reported having had premarital sex. Among married women who reported that they had had premarital sex, 87 percent had sex with their future husbands. Having sex with a future husband is unlikely to be considered problematic in the eyes of most Vietnamese, contend the researchers. HIV/AIDS statistics lend some support to the contention that unprotected premarital sex is uncommon in Vietnam. According to UNAIDS, Vietnam has much lower rates of HIV prevalence among 15–24-year-olds than do nearby Cambodia, Myanmar, and Thailand. UNAIDS and WHO estimate that, in 1998–99, 64 percent of new HIV infections in Vietnam were the result of sharing needles while using injected drugs. Nevertheless, the researchers uncovered some evidence that respondents to their survey were underreporting their sexual activity. Because young people are more likely to be candid in providing information about their friends’ behavior than about their own, the researchers asked respondents whether their best friends ever had sex. Of those whose best friend was not married, 14 percent of boys and 9 percent of girls reported that their friend had had sex. However, unless underreporting is much greater in Vietnam than in other countries, the data suggest that premarital sex is lower in Vietnam than in many other developing countries in Southeast Asia, Latin America, and sub-Saharan Africa. As would be expected given the low rate of premarital sex reported by survey respondents, only four of the 733 unmarried women in the sample reported a pregnancy. Two of these women said they had had an abortion. Pregnancy and abortion were much more common among the married women surveyed. One explanation for the skewed perception of young people’s sexual behavior in Vietnam may be that journalists generally report on people living in urban areas, where Western-style cultural changes, such as the appearance of nightclubs, are occurring. But 80 percent of Vietnam’s population lives in rural areas.Jobs What are the critical problems facing Vietnam’s young people? Mensch and her team asked the survey participants about their biggest concerns for themselves in the next five years. “Although education in general is a worry for younger adolescents,” says Mensch, “the main issues that trouble young people are employment and poverty.” Among survey participants in urban areas, more than half of all males and unmarried females with some secondary education are not currently working.The absence of sufficient employment opportunities for young people has implications for their health and well-being as well as for the economy. “In light of the ready availability of injectable drugs in Vietnam and the difficulty of providing adequate job opportunities, a scenario can easily be envisioned in which large numbers of young people become substance abusers,” states Mensch. Instituting a job development program may help the Vietnamese government to keep HIV confined to a relatively small proportion of young people. Source Outside funding See Also | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
