What This Means
This research explores how parents and young people in the Kaolack region of Senegal talk — or don't talk — about sexual and reproductive health (SRH) topics such as puberty, sexuality, and contraception. Using focus groups, in-depth interviews, and interviews with health workers and community leaders involving adolescents aged 10-24, parents, and other community members, the researchers found that conversations about SRH within families ranged from rare and selective to completely absent. Cultural norms around shame and taboo were identified as major reasons why parents felt too uncomfortable or unprepared to have these conversations, and discussions about sex and contraception specifically were almost never happening.
The research also found that when family SRH conversations did occur, they were largely one-sided (from parent to child, often as commands rather than open discussion) and gendered — happening mainly between mothers and daughters, leaving fathers, sons, and other family structures largely outside these conversations. Interestingly, young people themselves said they wanted to talk to their parents about these issues and saw their parents as their closest source of support, suggesting the desire for communication exists on both sides but structural and cultural barriers prevent it.
This research suggests that targeted training programs for parents — aimed at building their knowledge, confidence, and communication skills around SRH — could help bridge the gap between what parents and young people both want and what currently happens. The findings were used directly to design such a parental training intervention in the region, and they add to a growing body of evidence from West Africa showing that strengthening parent-child relationships around SRH is a meaningful avenue for improving adolescent health outcomes.