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Sex, Condoms and Sexually Transmissible Infections: A Qualitative Study of Sexual Health in Young Australian Men

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Abstract

Young males have a key role in shaping contraceptive use in a sexual relationship, yet often remain the invisible partner in safe sex promotion. This article describes a conceptual model of STI risk and condom use based on the perceptions and experiences of condom use in a group of young Australian males. An explorative descriptive design was used to conceptualize participants’ condom use histories into an organized description of behavior. Forty-two semi-structured interviews were conducted with a purposive sample of males aged 15 to 25 years over an 18 month period. A sequential analytical process of data immersion, coding, and category generation was used to identify personal meanings, motivations, and contextual factors associated with condom use and non-use. Three primary discourses associated with young males’ perceptions of STI risk and responding approach to condom use constructed personal commitment to sexual safety as dynamic, context-dependent, and outcome-driven (pregnancy versus STIs as the primary motivator of condom use). A regretful discourse associated with experiences of, or suspected unwanted outcomes, also emerged through changes in risk appraisals and safe sex intentions and behavior. Interventions to increase condom use should go beyond the traditional focus on risky behavior and disease prevention frameworks by addressing the contextual influences on personal risk appraisals and deliver innovative messages to reduce negative social meanings associated with condom use.

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Acknowledgements

We thank the Sexual Health and Blood-borne Virus Program of the Department of Health, Western Australia for supporting this study and all the participants for their involvement.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Pediatrics and Child Health, University of Western Australia, GPO Box D184, Perth, 6014, Australia

    Jennifer L. Smith

  2. Faculty of Nursing, Midwifery and Health, University of Technology Sydney, Sydney, Australia

    Jennifer Fenwick

  3. Discipline of Pediatrics and Child Health, Children’s Hospital at Westmead, Sydney University, Sydney, Australia

    Rachel Skinner

  4. Western Australian Centre for Health Promotion Research, Curtin University of Technology, Perth, Australia

    Jonathan Hallet

  5. School of Public Health, Curtin University of Technology, Perth, Australia

    Gareth Merriman

  6. School of Medicine and Pharmacology, University of Western Australia, Perth, Australia

    Lewis Marshall

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  1. Jennifer L. Smith
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  2. Jennifer Fenwick
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  3. Rachel Skinner
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  4. Jonathan Hallet
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  5. Gareth Merriman
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  6. Lewis Marshall
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Correspondence to Jennifer L. Smith.

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Smith, J.L., Fenwick, J., Skinner, R. et al. Sex, Condoms and Sexually Transmissible Infections: A Qualitative Study of Sexual Health in Young Australian Men. Arch Sex Behav 41, 487–495 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10508-010-9664-6

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10508-010-9664-6

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