Abstract:
Young people are at a higher risk of contracting HIV than other population
groups in Kenya as is the case elsewhere in sub-Saharan Africa. Kenyan
adolescents constitute more than 25.9% of the country’s population (KNBS,
2010). Ignorance about human sexuality among adolescents informs their
attitudes and risk-taking behaviours. Informal educational interventions that
target adolescents can complement school interventions and help protect
them from the risks of sexual infections and accidental pregnancies. As a
result of biological and socioeconomic factors, HIV has a gender bias that
increases the risk of infections among females than males. This research
focused on pre-teenage girls how they are socialized with respect to sexuality
by their mothers before they became sexually active. The study adopted a
quasi-experimental design with a target population of 220 women and
their 10-12 year-old daughters. Half of this population constituted the
experimental group and the second half the control group. Both groups were
subjected to a pre-test, which also served as a diagnostic tool that informed
the design of an educational intervention programme. The experimental
group received an educational programmatic intervention for a period of six
months at the end of which a post-test was carried out to evaluate the impact
of the educational programme. The pre-test results revealed no significant
differences in the demographic profiles of the experimental and control
groups, as well as in the ways the mothers interacted with their daughters
during school days, and weekends and in the subjects of their communication.
The post-test however showed significant differences between the control
and experimental group in favour of the experimental group. A comparative
analysis of pre-test and post-test data on mother-daughter communication
about sexuality highlighted the importance of educational programmatic
interventions, for the pre-teenage girls. The analysis showed that parents
can effectively socialize their young offspring about sexuality. Nevertheless,
the importance of programmatic interventions should not be downplayed.
