BEH4.C Sexual activity: Among those who reported having had sexual intercourse during the past 3 months, the percentage of high school students who reported use of birth control pills to prevent pregnancy before last sexual intercourse with opposite-sex partner by gender, race and Hispanic origin, and grade, 2021

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Characteristic 2021
Total 20.9
Gender
Male 18.3
Female 22.9
Race and Hispanic origina
White, non-Hispanic 25.1
Black, non-Hispanic 11.3
Hispanic 15.5
Other, non-Hispanicb 21.6
Grade
9th grade 10.1
10th grade 14.5
11th grade 21.5
12th grade 26
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: Changes in question wording made this measure incompatible with similar data gathered in prior years, so estimates here are limited to 2021. Data for birth control pill use are based on the student's response to the question,"The last time you had sexual intercourse with an opposite-sex partner, what one method did you or your partner use to prevent pregnancy?" "Birth control pills" was one option.
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.