Attitudes Toward Sexual Health Education of South Asian Parents

 Our research has shown that the vast majority of parents from the majority Canadian culture support broad school-based sexual health education and believe that they should also participate in their children’s sexual health education at home (Byers et al., 2003ab; Weaver et al., 2002). However, little is known about the ideas and experiences regarding children’s sexual health education among immigrant parents. Research has shown that the sexual attitudes and behaviours of South Asians living in Canada resemble those in their home countries where sociocultural norms prohibit frank discussions about sexual health matters (Solomon et al., 2004; UNESCO, 2002; Lambert & Wood, 2005). Thus, it is important to determine the attitudes of parents living in these countries. South Asians are one of Canada's largest immigrant groups. Thus,with Dr. Lucia O'Sullivan, I am conducting a web-based studying  examining attitudes toward sexual health education in India; we have just completed data collection. This research will have important implications for providing culturally-sensitive sexual health information programs and resources to South Asian adolescents and parents while helping preserve their cultural identity.