Sexually transmitted infections (STIs) among adolescents pose a serious public health concern because of the potential for infertility, chronic illness, and death. A health disparity exists for Latinas in the domain of sexual health, evidenced by higher prevalence of infection. The literature identifies high-religiosity and low-acculturation as protective factors for sexual health; however, there is inconsistency in the research on these protections, with some evidence of increased risk instead of protection.

This study explored the impact of religiosity and acculturation in an effort to improve understanding of how these variables exert risk or protection. The relationship between religiosity and acculturation was explored in relationship to three sexual health outcomes (unprotected sex, risky sexual behavior, and STI diagnosis) using data from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health (Add Health). Structural equation modeling of acculturation and religiosity in a predictive model facilitated comparison of the theory of planned behavior to a modified model incorporating religiosity and acculturation.

Results suggest lower acculturation and higher intrinsic religiosity are protective against all sexual health outcomes while extrinsic religiosity served to increase risk. The theory of planned behavior incorporating religiosity and acculturation performed better than the original model, suggesting the theory's variables do not fully capture the contribution of religiosity and acculturation in sexual behavior. Recommendations for social work practice and future research are provided.