School-based sex and relationship education: Towards a positive sexual self-esteem

An increasing number of young people are confronted with sexually transgressive behavior, such as sexting (sending and receiving sexual images or messages against someone's will), sexual remarks and dating violence. Two existing Dutch teaching programs on sex and relationships, and in particular on the occurrence of sexually transgressive behavior of young people, were evaluated for this PhD research: Benzies & Batchies and Jongens. Based on the positive results found, the thesis concludes that such curriculum can be used to prevent young people's unacceptable behavior; the programs must take account of differences between the sexes and the level of development of the pupils. This dissertation offers support to professionals who develop preventive interventions, and to professionals who work with young people in schools, such as teachers and school staff.