Research Projects: 3[ii] Qualitative research with post primary students

Research Brief 3[ii]

Qualitative research with post primary students

This study aims to explore post-primary students' perspectives on sexual health and behaviour, with a particular focus on their experiences of sex education in school. Attitudes towards sex education and to those who teach it will be examined, and the study will explore possible variations in such attitudes and experiences according to different school environments. The role of social contexts in shaping students' sexual beliefs and behaviour, and the language used by students to discuss issues of sexuality, will also be explored.

Background to this research:
Several regional studies have been carried out with young people in Ireland, including both quantitative and qualitative studies . These studies assessed issues such as young peoples' awareness of contraception, STI's, sexual health services, barriers to utilisation of services, sex education and the role of parents in relation to sexual health issues, contraception, drug and alcohol use. Results indicated a general lack of awareness regarding contraception and STI's (other than HIV/ AIDS), with considerable lack of awareness regarding sexual health services. The quantity and quality of sex education received by students varied greatly both between and within schools. Some students who had experience of sex education in school felt that the most important issues were not covered, including contraception, STI's and early pregnancy (Sheerin, 1998). Informal sources of sex education included peers, parents, siblings, TV and films and magazines.

While the above studies do provide important information and insights into sexual attitudes and behaviour of young people in Ireland, the variety of populations sampled (e.g. post-primary students, college students, marginalised youth) and topics studied make it difficult to build a coherent picture of the main sexual health issues for young people in Ireland, and information remains patchy. There is an imbalance in terms of location of studies- the majority of studies were carried out in the Midlands, without the inclusion of a major city. Other studies were carried out solely in urban centres (e.g. Cork city), with no comparative work available examining the impact of urban or rural location of schools. Research to date has also emphasised the experiences of older post-primary students (aged 16 - 18 years) with a dearth of information regarding behaviour and views of junior cycle students. The majority of studies have used survey methods, with pre-determined questions, which do not necessarily address those issues which are most relevant to the population being studied.

The perspective of the young person is important to identify, as failure to do so may hinder the planning of appropriate health care services for this age group (Peremans et al., 2000). Finally, there is a clear lack of any theoretical framework under-pinning previous Irish research in the area. Basing the present study within relevant theoretical approaches to the investigation and understanding of young peoples' sexual behaviour and beliefs would greatly add to the applied value of the study findings.

The current study will focus on the experiences of post-primary schools students, which will allow for an examination of sexual health issues in the context of formal sex education, namely the Relationships and Sexuality Education Programme (RSE), which was introduced in post-primary schools in Ireland in 1997. At present, there is a dearth of research that directly examines the links between young peoples' attitudes and behaviour and their experiences of sex education in differing environments/ contexts.

The present research aims to identify self-reported student sex education needs, and to provide preliminary insight into their experiences of the current RSE programme. In addition, the meanings, needs and educational/ social contexts associated with sexual health and behaviour in post-primary students will be explored.

Research Aim:
To build upon existing qualitative research to provide relevant data on the meanings, needs and educational/ social contexts associated with sexual knowledge and sex education among post-primary students in Ireland.

Research Objectives:

Research Deliverables:
1. The study will provide insight into pertinent issues relating to post-primary student sexual health and sex education. Specifically, the study will provide

2. The results from this qualitative study will directly feed into and compliment the quantitative research that will be carried out with post-primary students.

Methodology and sampling considerations:
The exploratory nature of the research objectives necessitates a qualitative approach to data collection. This research will be complimented with quantitative data examining related research questions with an adolescent sample. The perspectives of the students themselves are central to the present study. It is hoped that a qualitative research approach will allow for respondents' own experiences to be centralised in the data collection process. A qualitative approach will also help identify the dominant discourses used by young people when discussing issues relating to sexuality, and the values and range of meanings expressed by the language used.
Possible methods include use of focus groups/ interviews. The CPA is also open to suggestions regarding innovative data collection methods which may be suited to the study aims and population.

The sample will consist of post-primary school students, recruited from girls' schools, boys' schools, and co-educational schools. Both junior and senior cycle students will be included in the study, and schools will be stratified according to location (urban versus rural) and to whether or not an RSE programme is currently being implemented in the school.

Budget guidance and proposed timeframe:
The budget allocated for this study is the region of €40,000 - €50,000 inclusive of VAT
A suggested timeframe for conducting this study is 7 months.

Linked research:
The aims and objectives of this research are linked to those of research brief 1.
Please refer to the Invitation to Tender letter for information relating to expected outputs, reporting arrangements, ethical consideration, terms of reference, contacts and details for submission and content of tender bids. This information is elaborated in section 2.2 of the Invitation to Tender letter.

References: