Teen quizzes: A springboard for partner communication about sex and sexual health

Great effort is often spent developing, testing, and producing educational materials designed specifically for the needs of a target audience. But do they actually achieve the desired results? What approaches resonate with adolescents; and what makes a difference in terms of behavior change that can lead to positive health outcomes? This paper presents research on new approaches for helping teens to engage in conversation with their respective partners about healthy sexual behaviors including family planning method use and protection against sexually transmitted infections. A new approach is to fashion interactive, educational materials after popular quizzes commonly found in teen magazines. Designed to support a research project testing couple-focused family planning services, these materials were carefully developed, tested, and revised to include language, tone, and format appealing to a highly diverse teen audience. The development phase for the materials included individual interviews with teens, as well as input from a teen advisory group, male involvement outreach staff, teen clinic providers, peer counselors, and researchers. After these materials were tested and used in clinic services and outreach, exit interviews were conducted at the teen clinic, and focus groups were conducted at a local high school to assess the usefulness of the materials as a springboard for partner conversation. Preliminary analysis suggests that teens do use the materials to engage partners in conversation about sexual health. Details about the focus group results and exit interviews will be presented, along with lessons learned, and implications for designing effective, interactive materials relevant to youth.