Abstract
Background: Universities have a student population in the age range of 17 to 25 years, 75 % of whom are sexually active, with the median age of sexual debut at age 18 years. About half of all students are involved in risky sexual behaviour. Many interventions have decreased sexual risk behaviour in the short-term, but there is need for multilevel prevention, including targeting improvements in family relationships for sustained change. Perceived positive family connectedness has been found to be related to reduced sexual risk-taking among adolescents and young adults. Methods: This cross-sectional study evaluated the family connectedness and sexual behaviour of students aged 18 to 24 years at the University of Nairobi. There were 904 participants, both male and female, who were registered students of the University of Nairobi. After institutional and individual consent were granted, participants completed a self-administered questionnaire within their classes. The family subscale of the Hemingway Measure of Adolescent Connectedness was used to evaluate connectedness, and a sexual behaviour questionnaire was used to evaluate sexual risk-taking behaviour. Results: Six hundred forty (70.8%) of the respondents were sexually active – 372 males and 268 females. High-risk sex was reported by 203 male respondents (54.6%) and 117 females (43.7%). Reportedly abstinent participants had higher family connectedness scores than those who were sexually active (P<.001), and participants who reported less sexual risk-taking had higher mean family connectedness scores than those with higher sexual risk-taking (P<.001). Conclusion: Family connectedness had a significant influence on sexual risk-taking, and investment in family relationships could reduce risky sexual behaviour and potentially other risky behaviours among young adult university students.
Highlights
There are about 5,000 new HIV infections per day, and 66% of these are in sub-Saharan Africa
First-year students made up 28.3% of participants, 14.5% were in second year, 15.7% were in third year, and 35.6% were in fourth year
The majority of the students (71.9%) lived away from home, while 230 of the participants lived at the home of their parents or guardians
Summary
There are about 5,000 new HIV infections per day, and 66% of these are in sub-Saharan Africa. Of the new infections in Kenya, 93.7% are through sexual transmission.[1] Over 20% of youth in Kenya initiate sexual activity before 15 years of age, and the median age of sexual debut is 18 years. Perceived positive family connectedness has been found to be related to reduced sexual risk-taking among adolescents and young adults. Methods: This cross-sectional study evaluated the family connectedness and sexual behaviour of students aged 18 to 24 years at the University of Nairobi. There were 904 participants, both male and female, who were registered students of the University of Nairobi. Conclusion: Family connectedness had a significant influence on sexual risk-taking, and investment in family relationships could reduce risky sexual behaviour and potentially other risky behaviours among young adult university students
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
