Need for intimacy in relationships and motives for sex as determinants of adolescent condom use

doi:10.1016/S1054-139X(03)00137-X

Journal of Adolescent Health

Volume 33, Issue 3, September 2003, Pages 154-164

https://doi.org/10.1016/S1054-139X(03)00137-X Get rights and content

Abstract

Purpose

To investigate the extent to which need for intimacy in relationships and motives for sex are capable of distinguishing between adolescents who always have protected sex and adolescents who do not, with reference to both steady and casual relationships.

Methods

Seven-hundred-and-one adolescents (424 males and 277 females) aged 15 to 23 years filled out a questionnaire assessing determinants of sexual behavior and various outcome behaviors, such as having casual sex and condom use.

Results

Two-thirds of the participants (470) were sexually experienced. Discriminant functions using constructs of the Theory of Planned Behavior (attitude, subjective norm, self-efficacy), as well as the need for intimacy in relationships and motives for sex, were found to distinguish significantly between adolescents who always had protected sexual intercourse and adolescents who did not. This was valid both for sex within steady and within casual relationships. Besides a positive attitude and high perceived subjective norms, protected sex with a steady partner was characterized by low scores on the scale for the motive for sex to express love, and on the scale for the need for intimacy in relationships. Consistent condom use with casual partners was related to high self-efficacy, attitude, and perceived subjective norms, as well as a greater need for intimacy in relationships. Gender differences emerged with respects to determinants of (un)safe sex with casual partner(s), in that for males the variables of the Theory of Planned Behavior were most important in distinguishing those who had unsafe casual sex from those who had safe casual sex. For females, on the other hand, the variables concerning the meaning attached to having sex or to the relationship within which sex occurs seemed to be of more significance in explaining (un)safe sex with casual partner(s). However, owing to small subsamples, caution is warranted when interpreting these differences.

Conclusion

In adolescence, the factors which influence the decision to have (un)protected sex depend on the kind of relationship that exists between the partners. In addition, the goals which adolescents pursue with regard to their relationships and with regard to having sex fulfill an important role in the decision-making process whether to use condoms.

Section snippets

Participants

The 701 students who participated in our study were recruited from five Dutch vocational secondary schools. They were in training to become health care assistants, cooks, carpenters, plumbers, technicians, etc. The group of respondents consisted of 424 (60%) males, and 277 (40%) females. They were between the age of 15 and 23 years, with a mean age of 18 years (S.D. = 1.5). The majority (91%) of the participants still lived at home. Eighty-nine percent of the participants were born in the

Frequency of condom use

Twenty-three percent of the group with a steady partner always used condoms, whereas 16% used them “most of the time,” 14% “sometimes,” and 47% “rarely” or “never.” The main reasons mentioned for not consistently using condoms were “we used the pill as contraceptive method” (77%), or “we have known each other for a long time” (35%).

In the group that practiced casual sex, 48% indicated that they always used condoms, whereas 28% reported that they used condoms most of the time. Ten percent made

Discussion

Two-thirds of the participants had experience with sexual intercourse. Of those, 93% had had sex with (a) steady partner(s), and 46% had had sex with (a) casual partner(s). Females were far less likely to have experienced casual sex than males, although they had more frequently engaged in unprotected sex, particularly with their steady partner(s). This is in line with research of, for example, Vogels et al [19] who suggest that this difference between the genders may be related to the fact that

Conclusion

The findings have implications for health promotion activities concerning safe sex. It is evident that interventions should incorporate insights derived from the Theory of Planned Behavior. The data reported here support the notion that improving attitudes toward the use of condoms, developing stronger subjective norms, and enhancing self-efficacy have a positive influence on the practice of safe sex in adolescence. Our results also indicate that interventions that target specific subgroups and

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That is, intimacy motives were positively associated with number of anal sex partners and emergency contraception use, but no other outcome, in univariate analyses. However, after adjusting for other sex motives and drinking motives, intimacy motives emerged as a significant negative predictor of lifetime number of vaginal and oral sex partners and alcohol outcomes, which is consistent with previous research (Gebhardt et al., 2003). When considered simultaneously, certain sex motives may provide more predictive utility for alcohol-related problems than drinking motives.
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Findings indicated differential associations between motives and specific outcomes across univariate versus multivariate analyses. Multivariate models indicated greater endorsement of enhancement and less endorsement of intimacy sex motives were significantly associated with heavy drinking and alcohol-related problems, whereas alcohol motives were less reliably linked to sex-related outcomes. When considered simultaneously, sex motives accounted for more variance in some alcohol outcomes relative to certain drinking motives.
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International articleNeed for intimacy in relationships and motives for sex as determinants of adolescent condom use

Abstract

Purpose

Methods

Results

Conclusion

Section snippets

Participants

Frequency of condom use

Discussion

Conclusion

Soc Sci Med

Patient Educ Couns

Childhood and Society

Identity in Adolescence: The Balance Between Self and Other

Jongeren en hun Keuzes

Increased attention to human sexuality can improve HIV-AIDS prevention effortsKey research issues and directions

J Consult Clin Psychol

Adolescents, young adults and AIDSA study of actual knowledge vs. perceived need for additional information

J Youth Adolesc

University students’ knowledge of STDsLabels, symptoms and transmissions

Int J STD AIDS

Young People and Sexually Transmitted Diseases: Fact Sheet Number 186

Tracking the Hidden Epidemics: Trends in STDs in the United States

Sexually Transmitted Disease Surveillance, 1999

Stijging soa niet beperkt tot risicogroepen

Infectieziekten Bulletin

Sterke stijging in het aantal soa-diagnoses in 2000

Infectieziekten Bulletin

Estimating sexual behaviour parameters in the light of AIDSA review of recent UK studies of young people

AIDS Care

Jeugd en Seks

Determinanten van condoomgebruik onder jongeren

Gedrag Gezond

International article
Need for intimacy in relationships and motives for sex as determinants of adolescent condom use