Volume 43 - Article 44 | Pages 1297–1334  

Age at first sex and adult mental health in Nicaragua

By Jake J. Hays, Kammi K. Schmeer

Abstract

Background: Research suggests age at first sex, particularly early sexual debut, is associated with mental distress in adolescence. However, we know little about whether mental health deficits related to age at first sex last into adulthood, and whether this differs by gender, in low-income settings.

Objective: We estimate associations between age at first sex and adult mental distress in Nicaragua. Given the gendered nature of sexual norms and higher rates of mental distress among Nicaraguan women, we assess gender differences in associations. We consider number of sexual partners and births as potential mediators.

Methods: We use data from the 2011/2012 Nicaragua Reproductive Health Survey (N = 10,893 women; N = 3,495 men) and negative binomial regression to assess how age at first sex is associated with adult mental distress.

Results: Women and men whose first sex occurred during early adolescence had higher rates of adult mental distress than those who delayed sex until ages 15‒17. Delaying first sex after age 17 was associated with decreased mental distress for women only. We found little evidence of mediation.

Conclusions: Early first sex is associated with increased adult mental distress in Nicaragua. This finding is particularly robust for women. In this setting, women whose sexual debut begins before adulthood (age 18) have higher rates of mental distress.

Contribution: Findings suggest that early first sex may contribute to long-term mental distress, and gender disparities, in low-income settings. Providing resources to help delay first sex beyond early adolescence may be critical for mental health in adulthood.

Author's Affiliation

• Jake J. Hays - Ohio State University, United States of America EMAIL
• Kammi K. Schmeer - Ohio State University, United States of America EMAIL

Most recent similar articles in Demographic Research

The influence of parental cancer on the mental health of children and young adults: Evidence from Norwegian register data on healthcare consultations
Volume 50 - Article 27    | Keywords: cancer, children, fixed effects, longitudinal, mental health, parents registers

Do tenants suffer from status syndrome? Homeownership, norms, and suicide in Belgium
Volume 46 - Article 16    | Keywords: housing tenure, inequalities, life course, mental health, mortality, social norms, socioeconomic disparity, suicide

Marital dissolutions and changes in mental health: Evidence from rural Malawi
Volume 44 - Article 41    | Keywords: divorce, Malawi, marriage, mental health, widowhood

Life after death: Widowhood and volunteering gendered pathways among older adults
Volume 43 - Article 21    | Keywords: gender differences, HRS, older adults, trajectories of social activities, volunteering, widowhood

Gender differences in willingness to move for interregional job offers
Volume 40 - Article 53    | Keywords: gender differences, labor market, regions, spatial mobility