An Exploratory Study on Digital Contents-based Life-long Sex Education Program for Persons with Mental Retardation

지적장애인 대상의 성교육 프로그램 현황과 과제 : 디지털 교육콘텐츠를 중심으로

There is growing recognition that individuals with mental retardation are particularly vulnerable to sexual abuse due to multiple factors including life-long dependence on adults for care, trained compliance, social isolation, lack of education about sexuality and sexual abuse, and a societal view that devalues people with disabilities. Teaching about sexual abuse only may raise an individual's anxiety without promoting a healthy sexual identity. For many individuals with mental retardation, the provision of formal sexual health education and sexual abuse prevention training has been shown to be protective against exploitation as well as increase appropriate sexual behavior. To maximize the reach of formal sexual health education and abuse prevention promotion effort, this article suggest exploiting the internet and digital contents as delivery vehicles that have uniquely suitable communication characteristics and outstanding ability to reach large numbers of persons with mental retardation. We review the sexual health education programs, utilizing the internet and digital contents, for individuals with mental retardation. We also suggest the revised version of the Information-Motivation-Behavioral Skills (IMB) model of health behaviour change (Fisher & Fisher, 1992), and give a brief discussion of how useful this model is for constructing a life-long sex education program for persons with mental retardation.

본 연구에서는 현재 우리나라의 지적장애인 대상의 디지털 성교육 콘텐츠 프로그램과 현황을 살펴보고, 이에 따른 디지털 성교육 콘텐츠 구성에 대한 연령별 제안과 피셔의 성교육에 관한 정보 동기 행동 스킬 모형을 인적자원 개발에서 흔히 논의되는 역량(competency)이라는 개념의 모형을 적용 확장하여 성적역량(sexual competency) 이라는 목표 하에서 모형을 제시해 보았다. 또한 이러한 모형과 현황조사를 바탕으로 적절한 디지털 성교육 프로그램 개발을 위한 과제를 제시해 보았다.