Forum on Child and Family StatisticsBEH4.A Sexual activity: Percentage of high school students who reported ever having had sexual intercourse by gender, race and Hispanic origin, and grade, selected years 1991–2021
BEH4A Excel Table
BEH4A Standard Error Excel Table
| Characteristic | 1991 | 1993 | 1995 | 1997 | 1999 | 2001 | 2003 | 2005 | 2007 | 2009 | 2011 | 2013 | 2015 | 2017 | 2019 | 2021 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total | 54.1 | 53.0 | 53.1 | 48.4 | 49.9 | 45.6 | 46.7 | 46.8 | 47.8 | 46.0 | 47.4 | 46.8 | 41.2 | 39.5 | 38.4 | 30.0 |
| Gender | ||||||||||||||||
| Male | 57.4 | 55.6 | 54.0 | 48.9 | 52.2 | 48.5 | 48.0 | 47.9 | 49.8 | 46.1 | 49.2 | 47.5 | 43.2 | 41.4 | 39.2 | 29.3 |
| Female | 50.8 | 50.2 | 52.1 | 47.7 | 47.7 | 42.9 | 45.3 | 45.7 | 45.9 | 45.7 | 45.6 | 46.0 | 39.2 | 37.7 | 37.6 | 30.6 |
| Race and Hispanic origina | ||||||||||||||||
| White, non-Hispanic | 50.0 | 48.4 | 48.9 | 43.6 | 45.1 | 43.2 | 41.8 | 43.0 | 43.7 | 42.0 | 44.3 | 43.7 | 39.9 | 38.6 | 38.0 | 30.4 |
| Black, non-Hispanic | 81.5 | 79.7 | 73.4 | 72.7 | 71.2 | 60.8 | 67.3 | 67.6 | 66.5 | 65.2 | 60.0 | 60.6 | 48.5 | 45.8 | 42.3 | 33.9 |
| Hispanic | 53.1 | 56.0 | 57.6 | 52.2 | 54.1 | 48.4 | 51.4 | 51.0 | 52.0 | 49.1 | 48.6 | 49.2 | 42.5 | 41.1 | 41.8 | 30.6 |
| Other, non-Hispanicb | 43.8 | 43.4 | 45.9 | 45.3 | 45.6 | 40.1 | 41.6 | 36.4 | 35.2 | 37.8 | 46.3 | 38.8 | 36.5 | 34.0 | 29.6 | 23.6 |
| Grade | ||||||||||||||||
| 9th grade | 39.0 | 37.7 | 36.9 | 38.0 | 38.6 | 34.4 | 32.8 | 34.3 | 32.8 | 31.6 | 32.9 | 30.0 | 24.1 | 20.4 | 19.2 | 15.9 |
| 10th grade | 48.2 | 46.1 | 48.0 | 42.5 | 46.8 | 40.8 | 44.1 | 42.8 | 43.8 | 40.9 | 43.8 | 41.4 | 35.7 | 36.2 | 33.6 | 22.6 |
| 11th grade | 62.4 | 57.5 | 58.6 | 49.7 | 52.5 | 51.9 | 53.2 | 51.4 | 55.5 | 53.0 | 53.2 | 54.1 | 49.6 | 47.3 | 46.5 | 34.6 |
| 12th grade | 66.7 | 68.3 | 66.4 | 60.9 | 64.9 | 60.5 | 61.6 | 63.1 | 64.6 | 62.3 | 63.1 | 64.1 | 58.1 | 57.3 | 56.7 | 48.4 |
| a From 1991 to 2003, the 1977 Office of Management and Budget (OMB) standards for data on race and ethnicity were used to classify persons into one of the following four racial groups: White, Black, American Indian or Alaskan Native, or Asian or Pacific Islander. In each survey, a single-question format (approved by OMB) was used to ask about both race and ethnicity. In 2005, the national Youth Risk Behavior Survey applied OMB’s 1997 revision to the 1977 directive and began asking about race and ethnicity in a two-question format. (A methodological study1 was conducted to confirm that trend analyses would not be affected by the change in format starting with the 2005 survey). In addition, note that data on race and Hispanic origin are collected separately but are combined for reporting. Regardless of question format, the data were combined to create the following standard categories—White, non-Hispanic; Black, non-Hispanic; and Hispanic. Estimates are not shown separately for American Indian or Alaska Native, Asian, and Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander races because of the small sample size for each group. | ||||||||||||||||
| b Students were coded as "Other" if they (1) did not self-report as Hispanic, and (2) selected "American Indian or Alaska Native," "Asian," or "Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander," or selected more than one response to a question on race. | ||||||||||||||||
| NOTE: Data are based on the student's response to the following question "Have you ever had sexual intercourse?" | ||||||||||||||||
| SOURCE: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion, Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance System. | ||||||||||||||||
| 1 Brener, N.D., Kann, L., & McManus, T. (2003). A comparison of two survey questions on race and ethnicity among high school students. Public Opinion Quarterly, 67, 227–236. | ||||||||||||||||
Federal Interagency Forum on Child and Family Statistics
