La sexualité de l'adolescent varie en fonction des individus, des pays, des cultures et de l'époque. Dans le présent travail, les auteurs essayent d'approcher la question de la sexualité de l'adolescent en Tunisie à l'aide d'une enquête transversale, par autoquestionnaire auprès de 800 étudiants(es). Le taux de non-réponse était élevé (56 % de non-réponses). Les résultats montrent 352 réponses valides, avec une moyenne d'âge de 20,5 ans. 37,8 % des adolescents signalaient une activité sexuelle autoérotique (masturbations), entourée de sentiments de culpabilité pour 80 %. Des préoccupations d'ordre sanitaire et religieux sous-tendraient cette culpabilité pour la plupart de ces adolescents. Le taux élevé d'activité hétérosexuelle signalé par nos adolescents (60,1 %) soulignerait le relâchement des freins religieux et culturels vis-à-vis de la sexualité prémaritale ; cela pourrait illustrer un des aspects du phénomène d'acculturation de plus en plus prononcé sous nos climats. Malgré cette apparente « libération sexuelle », 40,1 % affirmaient avoir des difficultés à entrer en contact avec les sujets de l'autre sexe. Une difficulté à assumer leur identité sexuée apparaît à travers le désir d'avoir le statut de l'autre sexe pour 19,3 % des sujets. Le manque de connaissances en matière de santé sexuelle et reproductive (31 %) et l'éducation sexuelle, jugée insuffisante (30,4 %), risquent de compromettre la santé aussi bien physique que mentale de ces jeunes (vie sexuelle et affective perturbée, grossesse, maladie sexuellement transmissible). Un dialogue pertinent et une éducation sexuelle impliquant les pairs et les enseignants pourraient éclairer nos jeunes et les aider à avoir un comportement sexuel « sain », sans risques, et à développer une identité sexuelle adaptée à notre contexte maghrébin.

Adolescent sexuality varied with persons, cultures and epochs. Authors studied the subject of adolescent sexuality in Tunisia, an emerging country that succeeded in women emancipation since its independence. They carried out their study in order to get answer to a question: How a tunisian teenage is living his sexuality? Our study was a transversal one, done in the scholar year 2001-2002, about single students in university cities in the south of Tunisia. Our self administred questionnaire studied various domains: sociodemographic data; adolescent's relation with parents, with the other sex, sexual knowledge and sexual behavior of the adolescent; students answered the questionnaire. Results were anonymous. We have collecting 352 exploitable responses from 800 distributed quests.

Results. - 1. Profile of students: the mean age of our population was 20 and 1/2 years-old. Then they were at the end of adolescence. Sixty-two percent of students were female. 2. Profile of parents and family: for eight percent of adolescents parents were separated. The mean age of parents were 45 years-old (mothers were younger than fathers). 71% of mothers were without work (home keepers) and 75% of fathers had a stable profession. 3. Relational aspects between adolescent and parents: • parent-adolescent relation's quality: 71% estimate having a good relation with their mothers. It was especially for male adolescents; • quality's communication with parents: was estimated satisfactory for 3/4 of students. 4. Relational aspects between adolescent and the other sex: 40% of students have difficulties with the other sex, especially for female students. Timidity was the principal cause of difficulties (55%). Secondarily we have retained moral (42%), social (39%) and familial (27%) difficulties. 5. Knowledge about sexuality: • general knowledge about sexuality: judged as limited or inexistent in 31% of cases; • knowledge about transmissible sexual diseases (TSD): 11.7% of adolescents didn't know the TSD and 13.1% didn't have any idea about their prevention; • knowledge about methods of contraception: 13% didn't have idea; • discussion and origin of information about sexual life: 87% of students estimate that discussion about sexual life is important. 6. Sexual behaviour: • masturbation: 37.8% of adolescents use masturbation. The mean age of starting was 14 years old; • sexual relation: 38% were starting partial sexual activity. 22% had a complete sexual experience. The average age of starting this first complete sexuality were at 16.5 years old, for two sexes. 7. Attitude about premarital sexual relation: premarital sexual relation was judged unacceptable by 58% of students. Religions and ethic considerations were evoked in the first motive (63%) and the phobia of contamination by DTS was the second motive (33%). 17% of adolescents consider this premarital sexual relation as indispensable to develop their sexual experience and to search the carnal pleasure.

Discussion. - The analysis of our results underlines some particularities about knowledge and sexual life of adolescents in our series. 1.Censure of talking about sexuality: the high rate of non response (56%) can reflect the importance of taboos and/or inhibition about the sexual sphere for some adolescents. 2. Relational aspect with the opposed sex: 2/5 of adolescents had difficulties of contact and communication with the other sex. Timidity was the principal cause of difficulty (55% in adolescents), traducing frustration and sexual inhibition. 3. Lack of sexual education and knowledge: nearly one third (31%) of adolescents had a lack of general knowledge about sexuality. Many factors can explain this laugh of sexual education for our young: absence of information's program about sexuality for the young people, limited scholar level for mothers, importance of taboos and traditions. Parents were moved away, as a sexual information source, for 95% of students. This data is frequent in our socio-cultural context. 4. Sexual Behavior: in our series, 37.8% affirm using masturbation (six boys for one girl). More high rates were found in other tunisian and occidental works. Only 22% of our adolescents had done sexual complete relations. Occident studies showed more high rates. These religious and cultural brakes seem to be attenuated, especially for boys.

Conclusion. - Our society is in intercultural situation. It gives to adolescents an identification model and ambivalent, and fluctuant or contradictories norms. This study shows the importance of sexual education for adolescents.