Study: Surprising Number of Teens Having Group Sex

In a recent study of sexual activity in teens by the Boston University School of Public Health, researchers found that as many as one in 13 teenage girls surveyed said they had participated in group sex.

According to a news release, Emily Rothman, an associate professor of community health sciences at the university, surveyed 328 females who went to a Boston-area community or school-based health clinic. Rothman and her colleagues found that 7.3 percent of teens age 14 to 20 had what they consider multi-person sex -- ranging from gang rape to sex parties -- and 45 percent said at least one person in the group was not wearing a condom.

"Given the substantial proportion of girls who reported that their MPS was nonconsensual, additional research to understand more about the perpetrators, and how to prevent this particular form of sexual violence, is warranted," the authors said. "Researchers and clinicians should pay particular attention to younger adolescents engaging in MPS. Given heightened concerns about potential consequences, information about how to address MPS with this subgroup is urgently needed."

The average age of the girls reporting a MPS experience was 15.6 and half were under 16, meaning Massachusetts state law was begin violated regarding age of consent. A third of those surveyed said drugs or alcohol was a factor, but in half of these cases the drug or alcohol use was not voluntary on the part of the female.

The researchers note that the majority of the girls who had MPS felt they were pressured, threatened, coerced or forced into doing so.

"Group sex among youth is an important public health topic that has received very little attention to date," Rothman said. "It's time for parents, pediatricians, federal agencies, and community-based organizations to sit up, pay attention, and take notice: group sex is happening, and we need to be prepared to address it."

(H/T: Daily Mail)