In 2011, the USA had the second highest teen birth rate of any developed nation, according to the World Bank, . In an effort to lower teen pregnancy rates, several states have enacted policies requiring abstinence-based sex education. In this study, we utilize a difference-in-differences research design to analyze the causal effects of state-level sex education policies from 2000-2011 on various teen sexual health outcomes. We find that state-level abstinence education mandates have no effect on teen birth rates or abortion rates, although we find that state-level policies may affect teen sexually transmitted disease rates in some states. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Keywords: STD; abstinence; pregnancy; sex education; state policy.
Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.