Abstract:
This study was an evaluation of the sexual knowledge of individuals who have '"a
developmental disability and the effect of sex education. This was also a pilot study
involving the evaluation of the Socio-Sexual Knowledge and Attitudes Assessment Tool
(SSKAAT; Griffiths & Lunsky, in press). This tool is a revised version of the Socio-Sexual
Knowledge and Attitudes Test (SSKAT; Wish, Fiechtl McCombs, & Edmonson, 1980).
Thirty-two individuals participated in the study (20 males and 12 females), who were
receiving supports from local community agencies. Participants were assessed using the
SSKAAT and SSKAT in an initial assessment and in a 6-week follow-up. Sixteen
participants received a 6-week sex education program, Life Horizons I and II (Kempton &
Stanfield, 1988a, 1988b), between the assessments, while 16 participants served as a control
group. It was found that sex education was successful at increasing knowledge regarding
sexuality, as demonstrated by increased scores on both the SSKAT and SSKAAT. However,
the current study did not demonstrate any significant effect of gender on knowledge about
sexuality. It was also found that IQ did not have a significant effect on knowledge regarding
sexuality. The present study found the SSKAAT to be very reliable, with test-retest
reliabilities ranging from .87 to .99. This appeared to be an improvement over the original
SSKAT, whose reliability ranged from .72 to .90. Furthennore, the revised SSKAAT was
fOlmd to provide a much more in-depth assessment of sexual knowledge and attitudes for
individuals who have a developmental disability.
