Prior Sexual Activity Research Articles

Attitudinal, Experiential, and Situational Predictors of Sexual Assault Perpetration

Past research demonstrates that sexual assault perpetration is caused by multiple factors including attitudes, early experiences, and situational factors. In this study, 343 college men described either a sexual assault they had committed or their worst date. Discriminant function analysis indicated that attitudes about gender roles and alcohol, number of consensual sex partners, how well the man knew the woman, how isolated the setting was, alcohol consumption during the event, the man's misperception of the woman's cues during the event, and prior consensual sexual activity between the man and the woman discriminated between sexual assaults and worst dates. Additionally, tactics used to obtain sex, self attributions, the perceived seriousness of the assault, and the extent to which it disrupted relationships with others significantly discriminated between men who committed forced sexual contact, sexual coercion, and rape. These results demonstrate the importance of considering both individual characteristics and situational factors in theories and prevention activities.

A survey of pessary use by members of the american urogynecologic society

Objective: To describe trends in pessary use for pelvic organ prolapse. Methods: An anonymous survey administered to the membership of the American Urogynecologic Society covered indications, management, and choice of pessary for specific support defects. Results: The response rate was 48% (359 of 748). Two hundred fifty surveys were received at the scientific meeting and 109 were returned by mail. Seventy-seven percent used pessaries as first-line therapy for prolapse, while 12% reserved pessaries for women who were not surgical candidates. With respect to specific support defects, 89% used a pessary for anterior defects, 60% for posterior defects, 74% for apical defects, and 76% for complete procidentia. Twenty-two percent used the same pessary, usually a ring pessary, for all support defects. In the 78% who tailored the pessary to the defect, support pessaries were more common for anterior (ring) and apical defects (ring), while space-filling pessaries were more common for posterior defects (donut) and complete procidentia (Gellhorn). Less than half considered a prior hysterectomy or sexual activity contraindications for a pessary, while 64% considered hypoestrogenism a contraindication. Forty-four percent used a different pessary for women with a prior hysterectomy and 59% for women with a weak pelvic diaphragm. Ninety-two percent of physicians believed that pessaries relieve symptoms associated with pelvic organ prolapse, while 48% felt that pessaries also had therapeutic benefit in addition to relieving symptoms. Conclusion: While there are identifiable trends in pessary use, there is no clear consensus regarding the indications for support pessaries compared with space-filling pessaries, or the use of a single pessary for all support defects compared with tailoring the pessary to the specific defect. Randomized clinical trials are needed to define optimal pessary use.

A Survey of Pessary Use by Members of the American Urogynecologic Society

In Brief Objective To describe trends in pessary use for pelvic organ prolapse. Methods An anonymous survey administered to the membership of the American Urogynecologic Society covered indications, management, and choice of pessary for specific support defects. Results The response rate was 48% (359 of 748). Two hundred fifty surveys were received at the scientific meeting and 109 were returned by mail. Seventy-seven percent used pessaries as first-line therapy for prolapse, while 12% reserved pessaries for women who were not surgical candidates. With respect to specific support defects, 89% used a pessary for anterior defects, 60% for posterior defects, 74% for apical defects, and 76% for complete procidentia. Twenty-two percent used the same pessary, usually a ring pessary, for all support defects. In the 78% who tailored the pessary to the defect, support pessaries were more common for anterior (ring) and apical defects (ring), while space-filling pessaries were more common for posterior defects (donut) and complete procidentia (Gellhorn). Less than half considered a prior hysterectomy or sexual activity contraindications for a pessary, while 64% considered hypoestrogenism a contraindication. Forty-four percent used a different pessary for women with a prior hysterectomy and 59% for women with a weak pelvic diaphragm. Ninety-two percent of physicians believed that pessaries relieve symptoms associated with pelvic organ prolapse, while 48% felt that pessaries also had therapeutic benefit in addition to relieving symptoms. Conclusion While there are identifiable trends in pessary use, there is no clear consensus regarding the indications for support pessaries compared with space-filling pessaries, or the use of a single pessary for all support defects compared with tailoring the pessary to the specific defect. Randomized clinical trials are needed to define optimal pessary use. Where are identifiable trends in pessary use for pelvic organ prolapse, but no clear consensus on the indications for pessary choice or appropriate patients.

Reproductive health risk behavior survey of Colombian high school students

Purpose: To establish rates of potentially risky sexual behaviors among Colombian adolescent students. Methods: A total of 230 9th and 11th graders at a Colombian high school (69% of enrolled students) were anonymously surveyed about selected reproductive health behaviors using the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s self-administered Youth Risk Behavior Survey. Results: The response rate was >90%. The group was demographically representative of students. Twenty-nine percent of the group had engaged in intercourse (13% of 9th and 43% of 11th graders). Male gender [β = 0.7873; odds ratio (OR) = 2.09; 95% confidence interval (CI) = 1.57–3.08] and increasing age (β = 0.3413; OR = 1.41; 95% CI = 1.02–1.93) were each significantly correlated with prior sexual activity. Compared with females, males initiated intercourse at a significantly earlier age (β = 0.284; p < .001) but did not report significantly more partners (means 2.1 vs. 1.4; χ 2 = 1.25; p = .262). Forty-eight percent of respondents used contraception during their last encounter. Sixty-three percent used oral contraceptives or condoms, while the remainder used less effective methods. Contraceptive use did not correlate with gender or age. Age was significantly and positively correlated with use of alcohol prior to sexual activity (B = 1.28; OR = 3.6; 95% CI = 1.49–8.44). Conclusions: Compared with U.S. populations of similar ages, the Colombian group surveyed had fewer sexually active members, reported fewer partners, and used contraception with lower frequency.

Marital Status Transition, Alcohol Consumption, and Number of sex Partners Over Time in a Tri-Ethnic Sample

Longitudinal data from two waves of interviews with a tri-ethnic (Anglo, African American, and Mexican American) community sample of 892 regular drinkers are presented to replicate and extend cross-sectional research indicating increased numbers of reported sexual partners among the divorced, separated, and never married, relative to the continuously married. Analyses address whether observed marital transition differences in number of sex partners during a 12-month study interval can be accounted for by: the recency of separation/divorce, prior sexual history, prior drinking patterns, or changes in drinking patterns over the 12-month study interval. A major study focus is to assess racial/ethnic variation. Analyses replicate previous studies indicating significantly more partners among the non-married and suggest recency effects for the total sample, with the most partners reported by the most recently separated/divorced. However, covariance analyses indicated that marital transition differences were significant only among males and recency effects were found only for Anglo and African-American males. Among Mexican American males, increased numbers of partners relative to the married were found only among those separated or divorced for a longer time. The analyses do not support an explanatory role of prior sexual activity or alcohol consumption during or prior to separation/divorce with regard to marital transition differences. The present study of separation/divorce as a possible HIV risk factor emphasizes the need for further longitudinal research which seeks to explain observed differences, particularly in terms of ethnic and cultural factors.

Prepubertal initiation of sexual experiences and older first partner predict promiscuous sexual behavior of delinquent adolescent males—Unrecognized child abuse?

Sexual experiences of 1580 delinquent adolescent males ages 9–19 years admitted to a juvenile detention center from January 1985 to July 1990 were determined through a structured health history interview. A total of 89.6% admitted to prior sexual activity; 26.8% claimed sexual experience by age 11 years. Only 3.2% reported sexual abuse or incest. Of 334 sexually active adolescents who revealed both age of their first partner and their age of first intercourse, 42% had their first experience with a female 2 or more years older. Males who had their first sexual experience before age 11 years or with a female 2 or more years older, reported significantly larger numbers of sexual partners in their lifetime and during the year preceding their incarceration. Girls with similar first sexual experiences in terms of age of initiation and age difference from partner are considered to be abused. Practitioners who work with children and adolescents need to recognize the possibility of sexual activity among pre-adolescent males and to be aware of its implications.

Seroepidemiology of chlamydia in Costa Rica.

A population-based study of the sero-epidemiology of chlamydia was performed among a nationally representative sample of 760 Costa Rican women aged 25 to 59 years. Interviews and sera collection were completed between September 1984 and February 1985. The overall seroprevalence of chlamydial antibodies among these women was 56.1%. Women 25 to 39 years of age had a seroprevalence of 51.1%, while women 40 to 59 years of age had a seroprevalence of 64.2%. Women who reported no prior sexual activity had a seroprevalence rate of 48.6%, compared with a seroprevalence rate of 80.7% among women who reported three or more lifetime sexual partners. The geometric mean titre (GMT) of seropositive women ranged from 34.4 among the women who reported no prior sexual activity to 155.0 among the women with three or more lifetime sexual partners. Sero-positivity was more consistently associated with sexual activity than with age. Women with serological evidence of past Herpes simplex virus type 2 (HSV-2) or syphilis infection were more likely to be seropositive than were women without evidence of exposure to these sexually transmitted diseases, even when controlled for age and the number of lifetime sexual partners. The seropositivity among never sexually active women indicates the probable presence of Chlamydia pneumoniae infections, while the high seroprevalence of chlamydial antibodies among the sexually active women suggests that sexually transmitted Chlamydia trachomatis infections represent a public health problem not previously quantified in Costa Rica. Further seroepidemiological and/or culture studies are warranted to determine the incidence and prevalence of sexually transmitted chlamydial infection among men and younger women.

Sexual Experience and Contraceptive Use Among Young Adults in Guatemala City

Young adults in Guatemala were surveyed about their prior sexual experience current sexual activity contraceptive use fertility and previous exposure to formal or informal sex education courses. Socioeconomic and demographic data were collected along with information about attitudes toward sex education and contraceptive use. The results revealed that a high proportion of youth engage in premarital intercourse with the vast majority not using any means of contraception. For both sexes the reasons given for unprotected intercourse were that they did not expect to have intercourse and they did not know of a method. Over 1/3 of the males surveyed responded that they believed the responsibility for birth control belonged to their female partner. Of respondents who reported their 1st intercourse to be after marriage only 4% of women used contraception. A large number of women reported that they were uneducated about contraception. This is an important factor when 1st intercourse before age 15. Current contraceptive rates for 15-24 year olds in unions are 33% for women who use the pill and IUDs most frequently and 49% for men who said they used rhythm the pill the condom and vaginal methods. The planned parenthood affiliate in Guatemala is the chief contraceptive provider for young people in unions with pharmacies the principal source for unmarried youth of both sexes. Government clinics play a minor role in providing contraceptive services. More family planning assistance to youth emphasizing the mans role in contraception and expansion of family planning education are needed to address the increase in unprotected premarital sexual intercourse among the young people in Guatemala.

The role of health belief attitudes, sex education, and demographics in predicting adolescents' sexuality knowledge.

As part of a pretest-posttest design to evaluate a 15-hour Health Belief Model (HBM)-based sex education program, we interviewed 203 teenagers (aged 13-17) of both genders regarding their preintervention sexual and contraceptive knowledge, attitudes toward pregnancy and contraception, and prior sex education and sexual activity experiences. A multiitem sexual and contraceptive knowledge measure yielded several specific topic area scales and a total knowledge score, and a multiitem attitudes measure also yielded five reliable HBM-based scales. A series of regression analyses that used teenagers' previous sexuality-related experiences, demographic information, and attitudes predicted knowledge scores well (R2 = 0.22-0.54). Across specific knowledge areas, HBM-based attitudes (e.g., perceived serious consequences of teen pregnancy) were consistently significant predictors. Interestingly, neither previous sex education nor personal sexual experiences were significantly associated with specific knowledge areas (e.g., venereal disease), although they were related to total knowledge scores. Similarly, age and gender were poor predictors of specific areas of knowledge, but minority ethnic status was consistently associated with less sexual and contraceptive knowledge. Our model was highly successful in accounting for a substantial portion of the variance in total knowledge scores (R2 = 0.54). Results are discussed in terms of their implications for designing sex education programs that focus on motivation for pregnancy avoidance and contraception as well as factual information for teenagers.