Official websites use. Share sensitive information only on official, secure websites. Correspondence should be sent to Rachel G. Riskind, S. Tornello, and C. Patterson conceptualized the study. Riskind and B. Younger conducted the statistical analyses.
Riskind wrote the first draft of the article. All of the authors contributed to the analysis plan and edited the article. We used logistic regression with hierarchical linear modeling to examine the strength of associations between reports about sexual orientation and sexual and reproductive health. Sexual minority girls consistently reported riskier behaviors than did other girls.
Partner gender and sexual identity were similarly strong predictors of all of the sexual behaviors and reproductive health outcomes we examined. Many sexual minority girls, whether categorized according to sexual identity or partner gender, are vulnerable to sexual and reproductive health risks. Attention to these risks is needed to help sexual minority girls receive necessary services. Sexual minority adolescent girls in the United States and Canada have been found to suffer from a number of sexual and reproductive health disparities.
It is also unclear which sexual minority girls are most at risk. Studies have generally lacked the sample size necessary to differentiate between lesbian and bisexual girls. For example, in a study representative of Massachusetts high school students, more than half of all girls self-identifying as lesbians reported sexual experiences with both male and female partners.
These comparisons have shown that girls self-identifying as sexual minorities have higher rates of alcohol or drug use during sex, 3โ5 lower rates of birth control or condom use during sex with male partners, 4,5,7 and similar 8 or higher 5,7 rates of pregnancy.
