Portal de Periódicos da CAPES

Correlates of intention to use the female condom among women taking methadone

1998; Elsevier BV; Volume: 8; Issue: 2 Linguagem: Inglês

10.1016/s1049-3867(97)00101-1

1878-4321

Nabila El‐Bassel, Satya P. Krishnan, Susan S. Witte, Robert Schilling, Veronica Catan, Steven Pollin,

HIV, Drug Use, Sexual Risk

The correlates of high-risk women's intentions to use the female condom were investigated in a descriptive study involving 148 sexually active women from 3 US methadone clinics. 51% of women were Latina and 38% were African-American; the mean age was 39 years. Male condoms, douching, sterilization, and withdrawal were the most frequently used contraceptive methods in the 90 days preceding the study. 56% had heard of the female condom, but only 6% had used it. Of the 139 women who had never used the female condom, 32% indicated they intended to use it in the future. Such intention was significantly, positively correlated with age under 39 years, African-American ethnicity, and the belief the female condom offers users a sense of personal control over their sexuality. Those who intended to use the female condom were more likely to have previously used male condoms, believe their partners would be supportive of the device, think female condom use could be erotic and fun, feel confident in their ability to negotiate safer sex, and to welcome an additional option for practicing safer sex. They were also less likely than their counterparts, who did not intend to use a female condom, to believe use of this method would imply they had a sexually transmitted disease or were too eager to have sex. Compared with women who did not intend to use the female condom, those who did were more likely to discuss the device with at least 1 member of their social network. These findings confirm the necessity of considering gender relations and social networks in the design of female condom promotion strategies.