7 Factors That Foster Teen Virginity, Pledge or No Pledge

Despite broken promises, virginity-pledging teens were considerably more conservative in their overall sexual behaviors than teens in general—a fact that many media reports have missed cold. The act of making a virginity pledge may not affect a teen's future sexual behavior, but the kind of teen who takes a pledge is the kind who's already likely to be sexually restrained throughout adolescence. There's an important message here for parents: The focus should be on cultivating the teenager's ongoing home and social environment, rather than on eliciting a one-time, easily-forgotten promise. US News & World Report