Question

1) What is the secular trend toward maturation? What may account for this?

2) How does the secular trend toward maturation impact sexual desires? Will this account for more teen pregnancies?

3) What role does this play in increased rates of sexual harassment, abuse, rape, assault, and intimate partner violence?

Answer 1

1. Secular trend towards maturation is a fact that boys and girls are reaching puberty earlier as compared to previous years. We can say that average age of puberty is decreasing with time.

Causes of Secular trend towards maturation:

• Obesity
• Nutritional changes
• Environmental changes
• Hormone changes- Insulin & insulin resistance, it might lead to inflammatory reactions, leads to more production of androgens and higher level of leptin.
• Exposure to plastics, pesticides etc.

2. As hormonal changes are occurring earlier, it will lead to early sexual maturity and sexual desires will also develop comparatively earlier. This might lead the girls to engage in unhealthy sexual relationships as they are not educated about it. This can increase the chances of teenage pregnancy.

3. It will definitely lead to increased rates of sexual harassment, abuse, rape, assault, and intimate partner violence, as the teenagers have more sexual desires, exposure to age inappropriate content on internet and social media, and this might lead to a desire to explore their sexual organs.

Issues in parenting, peer pressure and exposure to addictive substances are also the causes behind unhealthy sexual behaviors.