ArticleArmy Women's Reasons for Condom Use and Nonuse
Section snippets
Introduction and Background
The incidence of sexually transmitted infections (STIs) is pandemic in the United States (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention [CDC], 2006a). More concerning is that rates of STIs are up to 7 times higher in military populations than civilian populations (McKee et al 1998, Sena et al 2000), making this an especially vulnerable group. Women constitute a special at risk population for STIs because they acquire them more easily than men and are often asymptomatic once infected (CDC, 2006b).
Design
A descriptive design was employed for this study. This study was a secondary aim from a larger study examining sexual health information needs among Army women (von Sadovszky & Ryan-Wenger, 2007). Based on the knowledge that reasons for condom use and disuse had not been studied previously in military women, specific questions related to condom use experiences were asked along with the information needs. Results of the condom use data are reported herein.
Sample
The sample for this study was 131 women
Relationships Between Major Demographic Variables and Consistency of Condom Use
Descriptive statistics for the major demographic variables are reported in Table 1. To examine regular condom use for vaginal sex by major demographic variables χ2 tests were performed (Table 1). There were no relationships between regular condom use and age (χ2 (1, N = 127) = 3.4; p = .08), ethnicity (χ2 (1, N = 131) = 2.1; p = .17), number of sexual partners (χ2 (1, N = 102) = 0.0; p = 1), or history of STIs (χ2 (1, N = 127) = .53; p = .52). Married or women in an on-going relationship were
Discussion
This is the first study to specifically examine the condom use reasons of military women such as why condoms were used or not used, what was liked about using condoms, and problems associated with their use. Relationships between regular condom use and various demographic variables were not in health-promoting directions. For example, individuals who were younger, had more sexual partners, or had a medical history of STIs were no more likely to use condoms than their counterparts in this study.
Conclusion
This study was a unique examination of reasons for condom use and nonuse among Army women. The reasons reported here were generated by the women themselves as opposed to being given forced-choice responses. Concerning in an age of pandemic STI rates is that regular condom use was low among women in this sample. In general, the majority of women reported positive reasons for using condoms; however, those reasons were not enough to sustain regular use. Important to individuals intersecting with
Acknowledgments
The authors thank Joanne Stevenson, PhD, RN, for her thoughtful and helpful comments in the development of this manuscript. This research was supported by Grant Number N02-007 from the TriService Nursing Research Program.
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Preventing women's sexual risk behaviors during travel
2008, JOGNN - Journal of Obstetric, Gynecologic, and Neonatal NursingCitation Excerpt :Second, the interventions were not designed for women. One intervention was designed for female travelers but has not been field tested to date. von Sadovszky et al., (2008) designed a portable, theoretically based and self-administered intervention designed to increase self-efficacy in using safer sexual practices.
- 1
Victoria von Sadovszky, PhD, RN, is an Assistant Professor in the College of Nursing at The Ohio State University. Her research focus is the promotion of safer sexual practices in young women.
- 2
Nancy Ryan-Wenger, PhD, RN, CPNP, FAAN, is a Professor in the College of Nursing at The Ohio State University and the Director of Nursing Research at Nationwide Children's Hospital in Columbus, Ohio.
- 3
Sara Germann, MS, RN, is a Doctoral Student at The Ohio State University.
- 4
Megan Evans, BSN, RN, is a Nurse at The Ohio State University Medical Center.
- 5
Christine Fortney, MS, RN, is a Doctoral Candidate at The Ohio State University.