Girls Shape the Future study

The Girls Shape the Future study, conducted in collaboration with Mathematica Policy Research, Inc. (MPR), from 2001 to 2006, surveyed more than 800 adolescent girls over a three-year period from approximately sixth through ninth grades. The data presented here focus on sexual behavior and attitudes and challenge common perceptions about girls whose futures are considered at risk because of factors over which they have no control, such as their race, their family configuration, or their family’s economic status. The report also sheds important new light on risk and protective factors for girls’ early sexual activity.