Families play a critical role in regulating sexual activity and reproduction. This notwithstanding, various societies possess differing norms depicting the attitude that their members ought to portray regarding sex. Consequently, the family is a major unit for offering such lessons to its members. It is also the main unit through which concepts such as sexual reproduction happen. It is, therefore, necessary for people to ascertain that infants are able to acquire the desired level of emotional and practical care once they are born into the family. In Jamaica, the family institution is consistently deteriorating, and this has caused significant negative implications on the advancement of good sexual behavior among children.
In the Caribbean, Parents are often uncomfortable to broach the subject of sex with their children. The regulation of sexual behavior is even less manageable in a scenario where one of the parents is absent in the family. Various contributions such as “My Mother who Fathered Me” by Edith Clarke, are emblematic of the difficult situation in Jamaica`s family system ( Gray et al., 2015 ). Visiting relationships have become very common in the Jamaican family structure; where the father resides away from the mother and child, making it difficult for a single parent to educate their child on sexual matters. Generally in the Caribbean, up to seventy percent of child births occur out of wedlock ( Gray et al., 2015 ). The percentage is higher compared to other regions of the world. Additionally, religious associations and the socioeconomic status of families have often been attributed as some of the major factors which contribute to a reduction in the regulation of children`s sexual behavior in Jamaica.
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Children who grow up in low socioeconomic backgrounds in the Caribbean are at risk of engaging in risky sexual behavior. Many children become sexually active before the age of 13 years ( Barrow, 2008 ). It is evident that those who come from impoverished backgrounds end up becoming victims of sexually oppressive practices such as prostitution in a bid to sustain their own livelihood. It is illegal for any person to have an abortion in Jamaica, and despite the fact that anyone found guilty of the act is liable to face life in prison, thousands of abortions still take place every year ( Baker-Henningham & Francis, 2018 ). Jamaican children from poor families are also at a greater risk of contracting sexually transmitted infections compared to those whose parents are financially stable. Lack of guidance on sexual behavior is, therefore, not the only factor that can contribute to risky sexual behavior.
Parental involvement is influential in regulating sexual behavior. According to Barrow (2008 ), a man`s relationship to a coresidential mate can predict their involvement in the family. Very few men in the Jamaican family system take part in their children`s lives. Mixed parentage is often common, whereby a father plays the role of a step-father and also the biological father of a child. The overriding expectation in the Jamaican family is for the man to act as a provider, although due to the numerous economic hardships experienced, many men distance themselves from such responsibilities. One can, therefore, discern that children are left at the mercy of their educators in school, who are expected to teach them appropriate sexual behaviors.
While there are numerous sources which teach sexual behavior to children, the family remains a primary influencer of good sexual growth. Children in Jamaica are often neglected by their families. As a result, sexual abuse has in many instances been regarded as a cultural norm that is generally acceptable ( Baker-Henningham & Francis, 2018 ). When parents raise children with sexually inappropriate behaviors, they are often believed to be the authors of such complications. Teenage pregnancies are common in Jamaica due to the defective sex education that children receive from their families. Girls who are lucky enough end up receiving viable sexual guidance from their elder siblings or other relatives such as grandmothers and aunts.
Despite parents not being self-assured about providing guidance on sexual behavior, children actualize such guidance with greater confidence compared to when the advice is obtained from other sources. According to Wilson et al., (2010) , the deviant lifestyles and sexual behaviors of Jamaican teenagers originate from early childhood. Children tend to adopt what they learn especially from the media. A research conducted on the development of young children in the Caribbean indicated that they begin watching television commercials and other forms of advertisement without regulation from as early as when they are 6 months old ( Wilson et al., 2010 ). Families are tasked with the responsibility of ensuring that they regulate the activities of children in order to ensure that they do not embrace intolerable sexual behaviors.
To sum it up, the family institution in Jamaica is consistently failing, and this has caused significant negative implications on the advancement of good sexual behavior among children. Regulation of sexual behavior amongst Jamaican children is especially difficult owing to the dissociation between their parents. In a majority of families, the father is often absent and only plays the role of a visiting parent. The mother, on the other hand, tends not to possess enough courage to educate her children on sexual matters. When both parents leave the responsibility of regulating sexual behavior to the teachers, it ends up being disastrous. Unless parents take up the responsibility enlightening their children on acceptable sexual habits, it is likely that they may end up having to deal with teenage pregnancies. Besides, their children may also be at a risk of acquiring sexually transmitted diseases. Finally, it is the high time that parents in Jamaica took up the responsibility of managing their children`s behaviors early in life so that they can enable them to experience a happy and fulfilling life.
References
Baker-Henningham, H., & Francis, T. (2018). Parents' use of harsh punishment and young children's behaviour and achievement: a longitudinal study of Jamaican children with conduct problems. Global Mental Health , 5 .
Barrow, C. (2008). Early Childhood in the Caribbean. Working Papers in Early Childhood Development, No. 47 . Bernard van Leer Foundation. PO Box 82334, 2508 EH, The Hague, the Netherlands.
Gray, P. B., Reece, J. A., Coore-Desai, C., Dinnall-Johnson, T., Pellington, S., & Samms-Vaughan, M. (2015). Sexuality among fathers of newborns in Jamaica. BMC pregnancy and childbirth , 15 (1), 44.
Wilson, E. K., Dalberth, B. T., Koo, H. P., & Gard, J. C. (2010). Parents' perspectives on talking to preteenager children about sex. Perspectives on Sexual and Reproductive health , 42 (1), 56-63.
