Words like "pro-choice," "pro-life," "liberal" and "conservative" pack power.
They can be used to frame discussions, but they are also likely to alienate many people who already know what they think about subjects that are politically and socially charged.
The same is true when it comes to communicating with teenagers, says Glynis Shea of the division of adolescent health at the University of Minnesota. Shea spoke Tuesday at the annual conference of the Alabama Campaign to Prevent Teen Pregnancy. And she said that experts are beginning to reconsider how they frame conversations with kids who are growing into adulthood.
"We need a new vocabulary when we talk about teen pregnancy prevention," Shea said. "Words are getting in the way."
Shea, a former advertising executive, said marketing research has shown time and again that framing a message is as important as facts. "The facts are meaningless without the correct frame," she said.
Researchers have identified commonly used words and terms that can turn off teenagers, shutting down important communication before it starts, she said.
In fact, the word "teenager" can cast a pall over a conversation, she said. Other conversation killers are "crime prevention," "at-risk youth," "protecting teenagers" and the most deadly of all, "teaching abstinence."
These terms imply that adolescents are prone to criminal behavior, are sexually out of control and need to be protected from themselves, Shea said.
She said the term "teaching abstinence" goes far beyond trying to get teenagers to delay sex until they are mature enough.
"It makes refraining from sex about fear, gritting one's teeth and practicing painful self-denial," according to "Tactical Sheets" distributed by Shea. "Labels like abstinence, abstain and abstinent remove sexuality education from the domains of health and development and put it into the domains of discipline and vice -- where the focus is not on self-care and learning, but resistance and endurance."
But getting people to stop using a word like abstinence is difficult, Shea said. "We're all using the word," she said.
She has approached organizations and agencies about the issue, and they have declined to change their language, Shea said. That's not surprising, since the word is included in specific language that is legally required to be used.
"We need to abstain from the word abstinence," Shea said.