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Massachusetts Youth Risk Behavior Survey
The Massachusetts Youth Risk Behavior Survey (MYRBS) is conducted
every two years by the Massachusetts Department of Education with
funding from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
The survey monitors behaviors of high school students that are
related to the leading causes of morbidity and mortality among
youth and adults in the United States.
The 1995 MYRBS was conducted in 59 randomly selected public high
schools. In total, 4,159 students in grades 9-12 participated
in this voluntary and anonymous survey. Because of the high student
and school response rates, the results of this survey can be generalized
to apply to public high school students across Massachusetts.
The MYRBS found that:
- 2.6% of high school females and 2.5% of males have had sexual
contact with a member of the same sex.
- 4.4% of all high school students, and 6.4% of sexually experienced
students have had sexual contact with a member of the same sex
and/or describe themselves as gay, lesbian or bisexual.
Students at Risk
Students who describe themselves as gay, lesbian, or bisexual
and/or who have had same sex sexual contact reported being significantly
more likely than their peers to face threats, attempt suicide
and abuse drugs and alcohol. When compared to peers, this group
was:
- Four times more likely to have attempted suicide
- Five times more likely to miss school because of feeling unsafe
- Nearly five times more likely to have used cocaine.
* These numbers include those who identify as gay, lesbian or
bisexual and those who have had same-sex sexual experiences. All
results are statistically significant and accurate to within plus
or minus 3%.
| Reported Behaviors |
GLB* Students |
Other Students |
| Attempted suicide in the past year |
36.5%
|
8.9%
|
| Was in a physical fight in the past year |
62.3%
|
37.3%
|
| Skipped school in the past month because of feeling unsafe on
route to or at school |
20.1%
|
4.5%
|
| Was threatened/injured with a weapon at school in the past year |
28.8%
|
6.7%
|
| Smoked cigarettes in past thirty days |
62.1%
|
35.2%
|
| Used cocaine in their life |
31%
|
6.8%
|
| Was pregnant or had gotten someone pregnant (Percentage among
sexually active students only) |
31.6%
|
11.8%
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