Sex Education

Sexuality, Society and Learning

ISSN: 1468-1811 (Print) 1472-0825 (Online) Journal homepage: https://www.tandfonline.com/loi/csed20

Family and Sex Education: A survey of parental

attitudes

Alexandros Kakavoulis

To cite this article: Alexandros Kakavoulis (2001) Family and Sex Education: A survey of parental
attitudes, Sex Education, 1:2, 163-174, DOI: 10.1080/14681810120052588

To link to this article: https://doi.org/10.1080/14681810120052588

Published online: 25 Aug 2010.

Submit your article to this journal

Article views: 937

View related articles

Citing articles: 5 View citing articles

Full Terms & Conditions of access and use can be found at

https://www.tandfonline.com/action/journalInformation?journalCode=csed20
Sex Education, Vol. 1, No. 2, 2001

Family and Sex Education: a survey of

parental attitudes

ALEXANDROS KAKAVOULIS, University of Crete, Greece

ABSTRACT The aim of the study was (a) to survey the attitudes and views of Greek
parents on the role of the family in children’s sexual development and education and (b)
to detect how teachers, university students and high school pupils evaluate the role of
the family. The research team applied an anonymous questionnaire with closed and open
questions. Answers to closed questions were elaborated by descriptive statistics, while
those to open questions were treated by content analysis. The results indicated that
subjects believed that families today do not have, to a satisfactory level, adequate
requirements to provide appropriate sex education. Parental attitudes, particularly,
revealed a great variety of views on what might be the long-term aims of sex education,
and underlined the need for sexual morality. Parents believe that concern for children’s
sexual development should start even from pre-school years and that immodest scenes
may have a negative in uence upon children’s sexual behaviour. They also believe that
the people (parents or teachers) involved in sex education should have some special
personal characteristics as well as a good training.

Introduction
Sexual development and sex education seem to constitute today one of the most
interesting areas of psycho-educational research. The area includes a great variety of
issues which refer to the way a child develops and becomes aware of the characteristics
of his/her gender and forms a male or female identity. It also refers to the attitudes and
behaviour involved in sex relationships. In the same area, research is extended to the
educational modes which could help children from an early stage of their life to develop
normally their sexuality and become a mature person.
Sexuality is thought to be one of the most important aspects of human personality
(Hyde, 1994). The word in its broadest sense refers to all aspects of being male or female
and the concept has biological, behavioural, clinical, cultural, social, moral and religious
dimensions. Psychological research has revealed that sexual development is a complex
process of changes which starts from the time of conception and continues throughout
the life cycle (Masters et al., 1995). Sex education also starts very early and is best
described as the continuous in uences exerted on the development of human sexuality,

ISSN 1468-181 1 (print)/ISSN 1472-082 5 (online)/01/020163-1 2 Ó 2001 Taylor & Francis Ltd
DOI: 10.1080/1468181012005258 8
164 A. Kakavoulis

starting from the family in the Ž rst years of life and later by school and other societal
factors. Any study of sexual development and sex education raises questions about the
importance of appropriate in uences coming from the family, the school and other
factors, the extent to which these in uences contribute positively, the age at which sex
education should start and so on.
The family has been recognised as the most in uential context in which the child
develops and it shapes sexual identity and behaviour from the beginning of life. Several
psychological theories have indicated the role of the family, stressing certain learning
procedures that take place in everyday interaction between parents and children.
Learning Theory, for example, suggests that human behaviour is developed by positive
or negative reinforcement which starts early within the family community. Social
Learning Theory insists on the importance of imitation and identiŽ cation and emphasises
that parents can be an important source of learned behaviour and attitudes, as social
learning occurs through everyday interaction with individuals and events. Social learning
is also important for the development of social aspects of the sexes, such as ‘gender
identity’ (an individual’s inward and personal perception of being male or female) and
‘gender role’ (an individual’s outward expression of maleness or femaleness in social
settings) (Petersen, 1980). Children tend to identify with and imitate others they admire
or respect and so parents can therefore be a basic source of learned behaviour or a source
of learned attitudes (Golombok & Fivush, 1994). Psychoanalytic Theory draws attention
to early childhood psychosexual development through a predictable series of develop-
mental stages that are thought necessary for the formation of mature personality and
behaviour. These are the ‘oral stage’ (Ž rst year of life), the ‘anal stage’ (1–3 years), the
‘phallic stage’ (3–6 years), and the ‘latency period’ (6 years to puberty). Although
several critics have disputed this theory of psychosexual development, there is still a
considerable concern for sexual matters in the early years (e.g. Ausubel, 1957;
McConaghy, 1979; Rosen & Hall, 1984).
Cognitive-Development Theory suggests that gender development parallels the intel-
lectual development of the child (Kohlberg, 1966) and proposes that children mimic
adult behaviour not to gain rewards but to achieve self-identity (Kaplan & Sedney,
1980). As children come to understand more fully what their gender label means, they
begin to seek out information, through observation and imitation of their parents Ž rst of
all, about that which they see as relevant to their own gender (Lloyd & Duveen, 1992).
The sociological approach to the study of sexuality, on the other hand, focuses on the
family as one of the social institutions which exerts a particularly important force on
sexual development through socialisation of children (DeLamater, 1987).
All these theories put an emphasis on the family as a most important and powerful
factor that in uences very deeply children’s sexual identity and behaviour. The question
that arises is, what are the attitudes of Greek parents to some fundamental issues of
children’s sexual development and education and to what extent can the family fulŽ l its
role in providing an adequate sex education?
In Greece, sex education has not been introduced to schools to be taught as a separate
subject, although it has become a controversial issue among politicians, teachers and
parents. It is provided occasionally through several traditional subjects such as biology,
home economics, religion and the social sciences. As elsewhere in Europe, many studies
on sex education have been published using different research approaches, but little is
known about the role of the family and parents’ attitudes towards it. Most are studies on
stereotyping (Maragoudaki, 1989; Kandartzi, 1991), on adolescents’ sources of sexual
information (Bezevegis et al., 1996), and on sexual behaviour in youth (Markantonis &
 Family and Sex Education 165

Kassotakis, 1981). A two-volume publication on sexual relationships, which resulted

from a seminar on Sex Education and Gender Equality organised by the Psychological
Department of the University of Athens, outlines the evidence available in a range of
aspects of human sexuality and sex education (Paraskevopoulos et al., 1995, 1996).
More recently, two cross-cultural studies have been conducted on the attitudes and views
of pre-school staff and university students, comparing Greek and British populations,
with interesting results (Menmuir & Kakavoulis, 1999, Kakavoulis & Forrest, 1999).

The Present Study

One way to look at the position and the role of the family in children’s sexual
development is to ask parents how they see their own role and to ask teachers and other
groups how they evaluate the family’s contribution.
The present study is part of a broader research project at the University of Crete in
which parents, teachers (of pre-school, primary and secondary school) as well as
university students and high school pupils are involved (2067 subjects in all)
(Kakavoulis, 1995, 1997).
The aim was to survey the views and attitudes of parents on some fundamental issues
of sex education in Greece and to present some data from a survey conducted among
teachers, university students and high school pupils on the family’s contribution to
children’ sexual development and education. More speciŽ cally, the research team aimed
at seeking answers to the following groups of questions about parental views and
attitudes.

1. To what extent do families today have the requirements (e.g. adequate information,
resources, and appropriate climate) to provide appropriate sex education for chil-
dren?
2. At what age should support for sexual development and education start and which is
the most critical age for the sexual development and education of children?
3. What kind of in uence would seeing a naked person (parents, older brothers or
sisters) inside the home or seeing immodest sexual scenes (in Ž lms, posters, prints or
elsewhere) have upon the sexual development and education of children?
4. What might be the long-term aims of sexual development and education of children
and adolescents and should people be provided, along with relevant information, with
an understanding of the deeper meaning and morality of sex as well as the
signiŽ cance of the relations between the two sexes?
5. Which problems related to sexual development and sex education are most serious for
parents and what characteristics should a parent or a teacher have in order to
provide adequate sex education?

As a research method, we used an anonymous questionnaire with both closed and open
questions, which was developed speciŽ cally for the purpose of this study. The question-
naire was delivered to a large number of parents throughout Greece via primary school
teachers. The total number of completed questionnaires was 372 (one parent from each
household). Of the sample, 35% were fathers and 65% mothers. From the total number
of parents, 32% had one child, 56% two children, 9% three children and 3% four or Ž ve
children. Some 14% of the parents had children between 1 and 6 years of age and 86%
had children older than 6 years. As far as parents’ educational level was concerned, 50%
were university graduates, 20% were graduates of higher non-university institutions,
166 A. Kakavoulis

27% had no education beyond secondary school and 3% had no education beyond
primary school.
In the study, we included the data from one question answered by 1027 teachers
throughout Greece (284 nursery school teachers, 429 primary school and 314 secondary
school teachers), the data from one question answered by 436 university students (from
four different universities and studying a variety of subjects) and the data from one
question answered by 232 pupils of the third grade of Lyceum (17–18 years of age) from
classes throughout Greece.

The Results of the Survey

The Role of the Family
This section focuses on the results of the survey of parents, teachers, university students
and high school pupils about the family as a factor in children’s sex education.
The parents and teachers of the study were asked to answer the following question.
· To what extent do you think that families today have the requirements (e.g. adequate
information, resources, and appropriate climate) to provide appropriate sex education
for children?
Table I shows that the four groups of subjects (parents, nursery school, primary and
secondary school teachers) think that families today have the requirements for sex
education, on the whole, to only a limited extent. Of the total number of subjects, 77%
believe that families have these requirements ‘to some extent’ and 5% ‘not at all’. Only
18% believe that they have ‘adequate’ or ‘very adequate’ requirements. All three
categories of teachers were less conŽ dent that families today had the necessary
requirements than were the parents themselves.
Students’ views were elicited by their answers to the following questions.
· Which of the following factors have helped you during your development to form your
sexual behaviour?
· On the basis of your own experience, do you think that the family is in a position to
provide adequate sex education?
· Should one of the purposes of sex education be to prepare young people for marriage?
Table II presents the results of the students’ answers to the Ž rst question. Students refer
most frequently to ‘friends’ (69%) and then to ‘mass media’ (56%), to ‘family’ (52%),
to ‘school’ (17%), to ‘church’ (7%) and to ‘other factors’ (23%).
The results of the answers to the second question showed that 43% of the students
believe that the family can provide appropriate sex education, while 50% hold an
opposite view and 7% answer ‘don’t know’. Answers to the third question indicate that
only 18% of the students think that one of the purposes of sex education should be to
prepare young people for marriage, while 75% give a negative answer and 7% answer
‘don’t know’.
High school pupils’ views were revealed by their answers to the following question.
· Which are the resources from which you get information about the relations between
the two sexes?
Answers to this question are presented in Table III. Adolescents seem to get information
from ‘printed materials’ (25%), ‘television and videos’ (20%), ‘family’ (18%), ‘friends’
(17%), ‘the social environment’ (8%), ‘personal experiences’ (6%) and ‘school’ (5%).
TABLE I. The extent to which families can currently provide appropriate sex education

Pre-school Primary school Secondary school

Parents teachers teachers teachers Total
(n 5 372) (n 5 284) (n 5 429) (n 5 314) (n 5 1399)

R % R % R % R % R %

Not at all 1 12 3 20 7 12 3 21 7 65 5
To some extent 2 237 64 227 80 355 83 255 81 1074 77
Have adequate 3 98 26 28 10 56 13 33 11 215 15
requirements
Have very adequate 4 23 6 7 3 5 1 4 1 39 3
requirements
No answer 0 2 1 2 1 1 0 1 0 6 0
Total 372 100 284 100 429 100 314 100 1399 100

TABLE II. Students’ answers on factors that shape sexual behaviour. A three-point scale was used: 1 (very little); 2 (average);
and 3 (above average)

Total Males Females

(n 5 436) (n 5 78) (n 5 358) Difference
SigniŽ cance of
Factors R % x̄ s x̄m sm x̄f sf x̄m -x̄f t-test difference

Other factors 102 23 2.65 0.56 2.71 0.52 2.63 0.58 0.08 0.78
Friends 300 69 2.24 0.67 2.33 0.66 2.22 0.68 0.12 1.36
Family and Sex Education

Mass media 245 56 2.07 0.74 2.01 0.76 2.08 0.73 2 0.07 0.77
Family 226 52 1.80 0.77 1.92 0.78 1.77 0.76 0.15 1.49
School 72 17 1.38 0.64 1.34 0.56 1.39 0.66 2 0.15 0.63
Church 30 7 1.71 0.71 1.34 1.43 1.13 0.41 0.21 2.38 *q , 0.05
167
168 A. Kakavoulis

TABLE III. High school pupils’ answers to the question : Which are the resources from which you
get information about the relations between the two sexes?

Boys (n 5 103) Girls (n 5 129) Total (n 5 232)

R % R % R %

Printed materials 83 25 124 25 207 25

(books, magazines, etc.)
Television, videos 78 23 88 18 166 20
Family 55 16 95 9 150 18
Friends 45 13 99 20 144 17
Social environment 31 9 36 7 67 8
Personal experience s 27 8 26 5 53 6
School 17 5 25 5 42 5
Total 336 100 493 100 829 100

Parental Attitudes to Several Issues of Sex Education in Greece

Concern for sexual development. This section focuses on the results of the parents’
answers to the following questions.
· In your view, at what age should support for sexual development and education start?
· Which age is the most critical for the sexual development and education of children?
Table IV shows that a high percentage of the parental sample feel that support for sexual
development and education should start at an early stage of development. Some 24% of
parents think that sex education should start from the pre-school years, 64% during the
primary school years and only 13% from the age of puberty. However, the most critical
period for children’s sexual development and education, according to the parents’ views,
is from 10 to 18 years of age. Only 17% believe that this critical period is below age
10, while 83% think that it is at the age of 10 and above (at age 10–12 years, 36%, at
age 13–15 years, 41%, and at age 16–18 years, 6%).

TABLE IV. Number (n) and percentage (%) of parents’ answers to the
questions : (a) In your view, at what age should support for sexual
development and educatio n start? (b) Which age is the most critical for
the sexual development and education of children ?

a (n 5 372) b (n 5 372)
Age for starting The most critical period

Answers n % n %

0–2 years 23 6 2 1
3–5 years 65 17 12 3
6–9 years 115 31 48 13
10–12 years 121 33 133 36
13–15 years 42 11 150 41
16–18 years 3 1 23 6
No answer 3 1 4 1
Total 372 100 372 100
 Family and Sex Education 169

TABLE V. Number (n) and percentag e (%) of parents’ answers to the questions : (a)
What kind of in uence do you think seeing naked family members (parents , older
brothers or sisters) inside the home would have upon the sexual developmen t and
education of the child? (b) What kind of in uence do you think seeing immodest sexual
scenes (in Ž lms, posters, prints or elsewhere) would have upon the sexual developmen t
and educatio n of the child?

a (n 5 372) b (n 5 372)
In uence of naked In uence of immodest sexual
family members scenes outside the family

Answers n % n %

Positive 119 32 5 1
Negative 111 30 317 85
No in uence 95 26 29 8
Don’t know 38 10 16 4
No answer 9 2 5 1
Total 372 100 372 100

In uences on children’s sexual development. Many factors in uence children’s sexual
development and behaviour, as is suggested by the various theoretical approaches
mentioned earlier. We asked parents about only two, both rather controversial, of these
factors: what kind of in uences might seeing naked family members inside the home or
seeing immodest scenes outside the family have upon the sexual development and
education of children? The results of their answers are presented in Table V. For the
in uence of seeing naked family members inside the home, the parents’ views are
divided and they do not show any clear tendency. Some 33% believe that it has a positive
in uence, 31% that it has a negative in uence and 26% that it has no in uence, while
10% said they didn’t know. For the in uence of seeing immodest sexual scenes outside
the family, the parents’ answers are much more clear-cut. The vast majority (86%)
believe that it has a negative in uence and only 1% that it has a positive in uence, while
8% think that it has no in uence and 4% answered that they didn’t know.

The aims of sex education. This section focuses on the results of the parents’ answers
to the following questions.
· What might be the long-term aims of sexual development and education for children
and adolescents? Write up to three of these aims.
· In sex education generally, should people be provided, along with relevant infor-
mation about the basic aim of genital function, with an understanding of the deeper
meaning of it, as well as the signiŽ cance of the relations between the two sexes?
· Should the relations between the two sexes be regulated by moral principles? If your
answer is YES, write the three most important principles.
In answering the question about the long-term aims of sexual development and sex
education for children and adolescents, parents expressed what they feel about their
children’s needs. They revealed a great variety of ideas, which are grouped in Table VI.
Developing and cultivating positive interpersonal relations (16%), good health (15%),
normal sexual development (14%), systematic information (13%), maturation of person-
ality for sexual life and behaviour (11%), developing children with emotional stability
(8%), and creation of a stable family and establishing conditions for sex upbringing and
education (8%) are the most frequent parental answers.
170 A. Kakavoulis

TABLE VI. Number (n) and percentag e (%) of parents’ answers to the question : What
might be the long-term aims of sexual developmen t and education for children and
adolescents ? Write up to three of these aims

Group of answers n %

Developing and cultivating positive interpersona l relations 103 16

Good health 96 15
Normal sexual developmen t 89 14
Systematic information 81 13
Maturation of personalit y for sexual life and behaviour 69 11
Developing children with emotional stability 51 8
Creation of a stable family, and establishin g condition s for 50 8
sex upbringin g and educatio n
Others 89 14
Total 628 100

TABLE VII. Number (n) and percentag e (%) of parents’ answers to the
questions : (a) In sex educatio n generally , should people be provided , along
with relevant information about the basic aim of genital function, with an
understandin g of the deeper meaning of it, as well as the signiŽ cance of
the relations between the two sexes? (b) Should the relations between the
two sexes be regulate d by moral principles ?

a (n 5 372) b (n 5 372)
Deeper meaning Moral principles

Answer n % n %

Yes 349 94 360 97

No 16 4 5 1
No answer 7 2 7 2
Total 372 100 372 100

A more speciŽ c question about the aims of sex education was that of the moral
dimension. Parents were asked whether people should be given a deeper understanding
of genital function and if relations between the two sexes should be regulated by moral
principles. Table VII shows that the majority of parents agree that along with the
relevant information about the basics of genital function, people should be provided with
an understanding of its deeper meaning and of the signiŽ cance of the relations between
the two sexes (96%). They also agree that the relations between the two sexes should be
regulated by moral principles (98%).
As to the most important moral principles, more frequent answers focus on respect for
human persons, mutual appreciation and respect (33%), purity, Ž delity, modesty,
religiousness, morality, honesty, commitment and trust (25%), love, sensitiveness and
tenderness (16%).

Who can provide sex education? With regard to the people who can provide adequate
sex education, parents were asked the following two questions.
· What characteristics should a parent or a teacher have in order to provide adequate
sex education? Write up to three of these characteristics.
 Family and Sex Education 171

TABLE VIII. Number (n) and percentag e (%) of parents’ answers to the question : What
characteristic s should a parent or a teacher have in order to provide adequate sex
education ? Write up to three of these characteristic s

Group of answers n (343) %

Relevant information : scientiŽ c knowledge, educatio n 308 43

Good relations with the child: love, respect, understanding , 234 32
interest, sensitivenes s
Personality characteristics : maturity, modelling, self-respect , 185 25
morality, free from sex prejudice
Total 727 100

TABLE IX. Numbers of answers (n) and percentage s (%) of parents’ answers to the
question: Which problems related to sexual developmen t and sex educatio n of your own
children are most serious?

Group of answers n (252) %

In uences from mass media 74 16

Lack of proper information 61 13
Dangers for physical or psychologica l health 40 8
Lack of sex educatio n in schools 38 8
Negative social in uences (drugs, violence, criminality , 36 8
abnormalities etc.)
How to become a mature man or a mature woman 31 7
Friendships 29 6
How to speak about sex 24 5
The Ž rst sexual experience 22 5
Lack of moral values 21 4
Others 98 20
Total 474 100

· Do you think that in the training of teachers, sexual development and education
should be taught as a special subject?
In Table VIII, answers to the Ž rst question are grouped. The parents’ responses are
divided into three major categories: relevant information, which means scientiŽ c know-
ledge and proper education (43%); good relations with the child, which means love,
respect, understanding, interest and sensitiveness (32%); and personality characteristics,
which means maturity, modelling self-respect, morality and being free from sex
prejudice (25%). The vast majority of parents (95%) also think that in the training of
teachers, sexual development and sex education should be taught as a special subject.

The most serious problems in sex education. Finally, we asked the parents to report
which problems related to sexual development and sex education of children are most
serious for them. Table IX shows the groups of answers and percentages. The most
serious perceived problems seem to be in uences from the mass media (16%) and lack
of information or bad information (13%). Some other problems are dangers for physical
or psychological health (8%), lack of sex education in schools (8%), negative social
in uences, such as drugs, violence, criminality etc. (8%), how to become a mature man
172 A. Kakavoulis

or a mature woman (7%), friendships (6%), how to talk about sex (5%), the Ž rst sexual
experience (5%) and lack of moral values (4%).

Concluding Remarks
The Ž rst point to make from the results of this study is that Greek parents and teachers
Ž nd that families today do not have, to a satisfactory level, adequate requirements to
provide appropriate sex education. Of the sample, 82% believe that families have these
requirements only ‘to some extent’ or ‘not at all’ (Table I). Some other studies have
indicated that the same view is held by the teachers (e.g. Menmuir & Kakavoulis 1999).
University students, on the other hand, do not regard the family as one of the most
important factors in shaping their sexual behaviour, and they believe that the family’s
contribution to this is far less than other factors. In this study, only 43% hold the view
that the family can provide an appropriate sex education.
The majority of parents think that the support for sexual development and sex
education should start between 3 and 12 years of age and they believe that the most
critical period for this aspect of child development is between 10 and 15 years of age.
Indeed, research evidence has supported the view that sexual behaviour starts from
pre-school years. Gesell & Amatruda (1941), for instance, have deŽ ned stages for the
development of sexual interests of children from 1 to 9 years of age. Other empirical
studies have also revealed cases of sexual behaviour in infancy and childhood (e.g.
Kakavoulis, 1998). These Ž ndings justify parents’ view that sex education should start
even from pre-school years. As has been pointed out, ‘sex education of the child is more
important than sex education of the adolescent, as the second one is, to a great extent,
part of the Ž rst’ (Berz, 1992).
The aims of sex education have been deŽ ned in different ways by different authors.
For example, stopping girls becoming pregnant, reducing the incidence of sexually
transmitted diseases, reducing ignorance, decreasing guilt, embarrassment and anxiety,
helping students question the present role of men and women in society, providing an
ethical framework for the expression of sexuality, promoting sound attitudes to healthy
living and helping pupils to learn the skills necessary for becoming sensible about their
lifestyle and personal relationships, are some of the aims of school sex education in the
past and today in Britain (Reiss, 1993; Forrest et al., 1994). In the present study, the
survey of parental attitudes revealed a great variety of views on what might be the
long-term aims of sex education, which cover the traditionally deŽ ned aims but at the
same time re ect today’s needs and developments.
Particularly interesting for the aims of sex education today are the responses of the
parents to the questions on sexual morality. Of the sample, 94% believe that in sex
education people should be provided with an understanding of the deeper meaning of
genital function and of the signiŽ cance of the relations between the two sexes, and 97%
accept that these relations should be regulated by moral principles (Table VII). The most
important moral principles parents suggest are: respect for human beings, mutual
appreciation, purity, Ž delity, religiousness, morality, honesty, commitment, love, sensi-
tiveness and tenderness. Although a consensus does not exist as to whether a particular
morality in this area should be adopted, it seems that there has been and still is much
ongoing philosophical discussion about responsibility, personal autonomy and the
potential of a religious and moral framework for sexual behaviour (Lenderyou & Porter,
1994; Reiss, 1995; Lamb, 1997).
Very often, several factors are thought to exert positive or negative in uences upon
 Family and Sex Education 173

the sexual development and sex education of children. Parents were asked about two of
these factors: seeing naked family members inside the home and seeing immodest scenes
in Ž lms and other places. For the Ž rst factor, the opinion of the parents is evenly divided
(Table V). It is a difŽ cult question and the actual consequences cannot be effectively
answered without longitudinal research. Many experts have offered opinions on the
potential long-term effects of childhood exposure to nudity, but until now these opinions
have been based largely on assumptions, not facts. In one study, the researchers
administered a questionnaire assessing recollections about childhood sexuality to 77
males and 133 females recruited from undergraduate psychology classes. Questions were
about the subjects’ sexual experience between 0 and 5 years and 6 and 11 years
(frequency of sleeping in bed with parents, of seeing parents as well as others naked etc.)
Results indicated that both males and females who were exposed as young children to
parental nudity showed a greater tendency to engage in casual sexual relations (Lewis
& Janda, 1988). Another view is that parents’ nakedness could be dangerous, because it
may take the form of exhibitionism. Parents have to make the distinction between letting
themselves be seen (without paying attention to it) and exhibiting themselves (not
without some self-complacency), which might have negative effects (Berz, 1992). Much
clearer is the answer of parents about the in uence of seeing immodest scenes. Of the
sample, 86% believe that immodest scenes have a negative in uence (Table V), raising
the question of the powerful in uences that are exerted upon childhood sexuality by the
mass media and social modelling.
Most discussions about sex education involve some consideration of the most
appropriate person to provide it. Parents were asked to identify the personal characteris-
tics required. Their answers indicated an emphasis on relevant scientiŽ c knowledge,
good relations with the child, social maturity, modelling, self-respect, morality and a
freedom from sex prejudices (Table VIII). It seems that sex education is not an easy task
and that those who are involved in it should have very positive characteristics as well
as good training to do it effectively. This is why parents are almost unanimously positive
about the question of whether, in the training of teachers, sexual development and sex
education should be taught as a special subject.
In summary, parents’ most serious concerns related to the sexual development and sex
education of their children (Table IX) underline the main needs that a programme of sex
education in school should meet. Overall, parental attitudes revealed in the present study
might make a signiŽ cant contribution to those who are responsible for curricular
development for school sex education in Greece.

Correspondence: Alexandros Kakavoulis, Professor of Child Development and

Education, University of Crete, Greece, Hir. Polytechniou 6, 153 42 Agia Paraskevi,
Athens, Greece.

REFERENCES
AUSUBEL, D. P. (1957) Theory and Problems of Child Development (New York, Crune & Straton).
BEZEVEGIS , E., GIANNITSAS, N. & GEORGULEAS, G. (1996) Pupils and students’ information sources on
sexual behaviou r in relation to sex and age, in: J. PARASKEVOPOULOS , E. BEZEVEGIS, N. GIANNITSAS &
A. KARATHANASI (Eds) Relations between the Two Sexes, vol. 2 (Athens, Ellinika Grammata).
BERZ, A. (1992) Sex educatio n of the Child (translate d into Greek from French) (Athens, Govostis).
DELAMATER , J. (1987) A sociologica l perspective , in: J. H. GEER & W. T. O’DONOHUE (Eds) Theories of
Human Sexuality, pp. 237–256 (New York, Plenum).
174 A. Kakavoulis

FORREST, J., SOUTER , N. & WALKER , S. (1994) Personal Relationships and Developing Sexuality: a
staff developmen t resource for teachers, vols 1–3 (Glasgow, University of Strathclyde , Faculty of
Education).
GESSELL, A. & AMATRUDA, C. (1941) Developmenta l Diagnosis (New York, Paul B. Hoeber).
GOLOMBOK, S. & FIVUSH, R. (1994) Gender Development (Cambridge, Cambridge University Press).
HYDE , J. S. (1994) Understandin g Human Sexuality, 5th edn (New York, McGraw-Hill).
KAKAVOULIS , A. (1995) Sexual Development and Education (Athens, Kakavoulis) .
KAKAVOULIS , A. (1997) Sexual development and education : attitudes and opinions of parents, teachers ,
students and pupils, unpublishe d research, Rethymno, University of Crete.
KAKAVOULIS , A. (1998) Early childhoo d sexual development and sex education : a survey of attitudes of
nursery schools teachers , European Early Childhood Education Research Journal, 6, pp. 55–70.
KAKAVOULIS , A. & FORREST, J. (1999) Attitudes and values in sexual behaviou r and sex education: a
cross-cultura l study among universit y students in Greece and Scotland, Internationa l Review of
Education, 45, pp. 137–151.
KAPLAN, A. G. & SEDNEY, M. A. (1980) Psychology and Sex Roles: an androgynou s perspectiv e (Boston,
MA, Little, Brown).
KANDARTZI, E. (1991) The Image of Woman: a historica l research of primary school readers
(Thessaloniki , Kiriakidis) .
KOHLBERG, L. (1966) A cognitive-developmenta l analysis of children’s sex concepts and attitudes, in: E.
E. MACCOBY (Ed.) The Development of Sex Differences (Stanford, CA, Stanford University Press).
LAMB, S. (1997) Sex educatio n as moral education : teaching for pleasure about fantasy, and against
abuse, Journal of Moral Education, 26, pp. 301–315.
LENDERYOU, G. & PORTER, M. (1994) Sex Education, Values and Morality (London, Health Education
Authority).
LEWIS , R. J. & JANDA, L. H. (1988) The relationship s between adult sexual adjustment and childhoo d
experience s regarding exposure to nudity, sleeping in the parental bed, and parental attitudes toward
sexuality, Archives of Sexual Behavior, 17, pp. 349–362.
LLOYD, B. & DUVEEN, G. (1992) Gender Identitie s and Education (New York, Harvester Wheatsheaf) .
MARAGOUDAKI, E. (1989) Discrimination between sexes in pre-schoo l children’s books, PhD thesis,
Ioannina, University of Ioannina .
MARKANTONIS , J. S. & KASSOTAKIS, M. I. (1981) The relations between the two sexes among universit y
students, in: GREEK SOCIETY OF HUMAN GENETICS (Ed.) Sex Education (Athens, Greek Society of
Human Genetics).
MCCONAGHY , M. J. (1979) Gender permanenc e and the genital basis of gender. Stages in the develop -
ment of constancy of gender identity, Child Development, 50, pp. 1223–1226.
MASTERS, W. H., JOHNSON, V. E & KOLODNY , R. C. (1995) Human Sexuality (London, Harper Collins).
MENMUIR, J. & KAKAVOULIS , A. (1999) Sexual developmen t and education in early years: a study of
attitudes of pre-schoo l staff in Greece and Scotland, Early Child Development and Care, 149,
pp. 27–45.
PARASKEVOPOULOS , J., BEZEVEGIS , E., GIANNITSAS , N. & KARATHANASSI , A. (Eds) (1995, 1996) Relations
between the Two Sexes, vols 1 & 2 (Athens, Ellinika Grammata).
PETERSEN, A. C. (1980) Biopsychosocia l processes in the development of sex related differences , in: J. E.
PARSONS (Ed.) The Psychology of Sex Differences and Sex Roles (New York, Hemisphere).
REISS, M. J. (1993) What are the aims of school sex education ? Cambridge Journal of Education, 23,
pp. 125–136.
REISS, M. J. (1995) Con icting philosophie s of school sex education , Journal of Moral Education, 24,
pp. 371–382.
ROSEN, R. & HALL, E. (1984) Sexuality (New York, Random House).
THOMSON, R. (1997) Diversity, values and social change: renegotiatin g a consensus on sex education ,
Journal of Moral Education, 26, pp. 257–271.