Drinking and Safer Sex: Are College Students at Risk?

Abstract

Researchers warn about the spread of HIV infection among college students, low levels of condom use within this population, and the impact of alcohol consumption on risky behaviors. For the present study, questionnaires were distributed to students at several U.S. universities during the 1995-96 academic year. Usable questionnaires were returned by 1,902 students (1,134 women and 768 men). In all, 1.4% of 1,134 women (n = 16) and 7.6% of 768 men (n = 58) who completed usable questionnaires reported engaging in unprotected vaginal or anal intercourse after “drinking more than normal in order to make it easier to have sex with someone” during the past year. It was hypothesized that a greater proportion of men in the sample would engage in risky sexual behaviors (i.e., unprotected vaginal or anal intercourse). It was also hypothesized that, due to the specific risk factors involved in HIV transmission, women in the sample would be at a relatively greater risk of HIV transmission. The risk posed to students b...