Detroit mother-daughter communication patterns study

The purpose of this study was to investigate the influence of mothers on the sexual and contraceptive behavior of teenage daughters. Patterns of communication between mothers and daughters about sex roles and sexual behavior in different types of families were examined. The sample consisted of 449 14- or 15-year-old girls and their mothers, all of whom volunteered for the study. The sampling frame consisted of public school registration lists from the Detroit school system. Seven schools were chosen on the basis of overall socioeconomic standing and racial composition of the student bodies, and the registration lists were stratified by race, sex, and birthdate. Fifty-six percent of the sample were African-American, and 44% white. Structured interviews were administered to the pairs of mothers and daughters separately but simultaneously. The following topics were covered: work, family, and educational plans; communication about dating, sexual morality, birth control, reproduction, menstruation, and sexual intercourse; activities mothers and daughters do together; friendship; parenting; satisfaction with the mother-daughter relationship; attitudes about sexual behavior; sex role attitudes; pregnancy and abortion; birth control; and basic demographic information. The Murray Center holds all computer-accessible data for this study.