A causal model of sexual abstinence in Thai female adolescents

Abstract

This study aimed to develop and test a causal model of sexual abstinence in Thai female adolescents guiding by the Health Promotion Model of Pender, Murdaugh and, Parsons (2015). Data were collected from 654 first-year female students studying in six higher education institutions and six high-vocational schools in Thailand. Validity and reliability of 6 existing measures and 2 newly developed measures were established prior to data collection. The causal model was analyzed using Mplus program.

It was found that the causal model of sexual abstinence fit the empirical data with Chi-square (χ2) = 434.344, p<0.05, degrees of freedom (df) = 173, χ2/df = 2.51, Comparative fit Index (CFI) = 0.967, Tucker-Lewis Fit Index (TLI) = 0.955, Root Mean Square Error of Approximation (RMSEA) = 0.048, Standardized Root Mean Square Residual (SRMR) = 0.041. Sixty-eight percent of the variance in Thai female adolescents’ sexual abstinence was explained by child-rearing promoting sexual abstinence, commitment to a plan of sexual abstinence, perceived benefits, perceived self-efficacy, and perceived barriers. Among these five variables, the child-rearing promoting sexual abstinence had the largest total effect on sexual abstinence, followed by commitment to a plan of sexual abstinence, perceived benefits, perceived self-efficacy, and perceived barriers, respectively.

This model can be used by healthcare providers to promote sexual abstinence in Thai female adolescents.