Parenting Styles as Predictors of Risky Sexual Behaviors among Selected Public Secondary School Students in Embu County, Kenya

Secondary school students are faced with challenges of navigating safely through their adolescence in a world where the culture of sexual immorality is growing fast. Parents play a key role in socializing their children on social norms; however the extent to which parenting styles predetermine students’ risky behaviors remains obscure. The study investigated parenting styles, as predictors of risky sexual behavior among secondary school students. The study was objective was; to investigate the extent to which parenting styles significantly predict secondary school students’ risky sexual behaviors. Survey research design was adopted for the study. Stratified random sampling was used to select a sample of 15 schools. Stratified random sampling and systematic random sampling were used to select 399 participants (221 girls and 178 boys). Purposive sampling was used to select 15 Guidance and counseling teachers and 70 secondary school dropouts. A reliability of cronbach alpha (α) of α = 0.82 for parenting styles questionnaires was reported and α = 0.78 for risky sexual behaviour. The major findings of the study based on the objective of the study showed that parenting styles have a positive and significant prediction of risky sexual behaviors among secondary school students, and that parenting styles accounts for ; 57.2% (R2=0.572, p< 0.05) of secondary school students risky sexual behaviors, The study therefore recommended that school boards of management in conjunction with the Parents Teachers Association, develop intervention measures by organizing seminars for parents to sensitize them on good parenting with the aim of addressing adolescence sexuality. The seminars should be aimed at building the capacity of parents to enable them carry out discussions on sex issues with their adolescent children.