A home-practice intervention for increasing condom use among university undergraduates
A home-practice intervention for increasing condom use among university undergraduates
The consistently high rate of sexually transmitted infections among people 18–24 years old warrants novel strategies promoting condom use among large segments of this population. Ample opportunity exits to employ such strategies in university settings. This study evaluated a sex-positive, home-practice intervention designed to promote condom use among university undergraduates engaging in penile–vaginal intercourse (PVI). A sample of 29 opposite-sex undergraduate couples, engaging in PVI, was recruited from a large university. After teaching couples about condom use, a health educator helped couples select condoms/lubricants from options comprising various sizes, fits, shapes, textures, and other features. A 30-day ‘homework assignment’ was made to use these products while reducing condom use errors/problems and enhancing sexual pleasure. A repeated measures design, with a six-month observation period, was used to evaluate the program. Over the six-month period, the mean frequency of condomless PVI decreased from 26.4 to 3.9 times (P <.001). Significant and favorable changes were also found relative to attitudes toward condom use (P =.027) and in condom use self-efficacy (P <.001). Most students completing the follow-up assessment indicated the intervention would favorably impact their future condom use. Findings suggest this intervention program may be important to promoting condom use among university couples engaging in PVI.
Condom, intervention, opposite sex
1149-1153
Ricks, Janette
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Crosby, Richard
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Graham, Cynthia
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Sanders, Stephanie A.
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Milhausen, Robin
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Yarber, William L
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1 October 2020
Ricks, Janette
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Crosby, Richard
2801f68b-3b83-422a-9687-9bade8502cf9
Graham, Cynthia
ac400331-f231-4449-a69b-ec9a477224c8
Sanders, Stephanie A.
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Milhausen, Robin
d6e78d8f-c05a-4c64-a8f7-5b7204ccc12b
Yarber, William L
6d44e4bd-492e-4d9c-84a7-e499de8cfb6d
Ricks, Janette, Crosby, Richard, Graham, Cynthia, Sanders, Stephanie A., Milhausen, Robin and Yarber, William L
(2020)
A home-practice intervention for increasing condom use among university undergraduates.
International Journal of STD & AIDS, 31 (12), .
(doi:10.1177/0956462420933056).
Abstract
The consistently high rate of sexually transmitted infections among people 18–24 years old warrants novel strategies promoting condom use among large segments of this population. Ample opportunity exits to employ such strategies in university settings. This study evaluated a sex-positive, home-practice intervention designed to promote condom use among university undergraduates engaging in penile–vaginal intercourse (PVI). A sample of 29 opposite-sex undergraduate couples, engaging in PVI, was recruited from a large university. After teaching couples about condom use, a health educator helped couples select condoms/lubricants from options comprising various sizes, fits, shapes, textures, and other features. A 30-day ‘homework assignment’ was made to use these products while reducing condom use errors/problems and enhancing sexual pleasure. A repeated measures design, with a six-month observation period, was used to evaluate the program. Over the six-month period, the mean frequency of condomless PVI decreased from 26.4 to 3.9 times (P <.001). Significant and favorable changes were also found relative to attitudes toward condom use (P =.027) and in condom use self-efficacy (P <.001). Most students completing the follow-up assessment indicated the intervention would favorably impact their future condom use. Findings suggest this intervention program may be important to promoting condom use among university couples engaging in PVI.
Text
Ricks Crosby & Graham HIS_Accepted version IJSTD_AIDS May 2020
- Accepted Manuscript
More information
Accepted/In Press date: 15 May 2020
e-pub ahead of print date: 3 September 2020
Published date: 1 October 2020
Additional Information:
Copyright © 2020, © SAGE Publications
Keywords:
Condom, intervention, opposite sex
Identifiers
Local EPrints ID: 441070
URI: http://eprints.soton.ac.uk/id/eprint/441070
ISSN: 0956-4624
PURE UUID: c6359951-ae8f-42b6-ab94-38791a2846de
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Date deposited: 29 May 2020 16:30
Last modified: 17 Mar 2024 05:34
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Contributors
Author:
Janette Ricks
Author:
Richard Crosby
Author:
Stephanie A. Sanders
Author:
Robin Milhausen
Author:
William L Yarber
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