USC Releases Results of Sexuality, RH Study in Visayas

In a study conducted by the University of San Carlos (USC) Center for Social Research and Education (CSRE) in the Visayas, at the age of 10 and 11, boys and girls think that the right age for a man to get a woman pregnant is between 28 and 32 years old.

This was reported by USC CSRE Director Dr. Fiscalina Amadora-Nolasco when she presented the knowledge of sexuality and reproductive health among Filipino children in the Visayas using data from two time points.

The first wave is at age 10 and the second wave is at age 11.

Nolasco added that at the age of 10 and 11, around 40 percent of children of both ages think that the right age for a woman to get pregnant is between 28 and 32 years old.

At age 10, the mean age of the children who think that the right age for women to get pregnant is 29 while 30 for children aged 11.

“So as they grow older, ni saka pud ang mean age (the mean age goes up),” Nolasco said.

The findings by USC CSRE are part of the longitudinal cohort study on the Filipino children in Visayas domain that explores their interpretation of dating, marriage, sexuality and reproductive health.

The study aims to inform the current status of Filipino children, focusing on specific vulnerabilities to stakeholders and to track children’s development emphasizing the need for base resource in policy making and development planning.

The study is designed to prospectively observe a nationally representative cohort of Filipinos from age 10 (2016) to 24 (2030).

The study began in 2016 with the USC Office of the Population Studies, Inc. (OPS) as implementing institution with the baseline survey followed by a qualitative research in 2017 and another qualitative research in 2018.

Director of USC OPS Dr. Nanette Mayol said the study targeted 5,000 participants from Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao that will represent the about two million 10-year old children in the country.

“It’s very insightful because in the end, remember, these participants give us a glimpse of what kind of future we will have,” said USC School of Arts and Sciences Dean Dr. Delia Belleza.

“Understanding how they will look at things and some of the issues that they are experiencing around,” Belleza added. (fan/PIA7)