Relationships of substance use and sexual behavior of female junior high school students in Korea: A cross-sectional Web-based survey

Abstract The purpose of this study was to identify the sexual behavior and associated factors of Korean female junior high school students. This study design was cross-sectional, and used raw data from the 2013 Korea Youth Risk Behavior Web-based Survey. Among the data from 72,435 students, we analyzed those from 17,609 female junior high school students. Descriptive statistics were used to identify sexual behavior, and χ2-test and logistic regression were used to identify factors related to sexual behavior. Among the female students, 2.5% responded that they had experienced sexual intercourse, and the prevalence of sexual intercourse was higher among mixed-school students than girls’-school students. The students’ risk behaviors or mental health such as drinking, smoking, drug use, depression, and suicidal ideation or attempt showed significant associations whether they had experiences of sexual intercourse or not. Factors which significantly related to students’ likelihood of sexual intercourse were smoking, drug use, depression, suicidal attempt, perceived economic status, and part-time job experiences. Based on the results of this study, development of a sexual education program including a focus on the students’ risk behaviors and mental health is recommended to reduce the likelihood of risky sex among Korean female junior high school students.