229096 Assessing college-aged men and women's attitudes about condoms: The development of the Brief Condom Attitudes Scale

Monday, November 8, 2010

Erick Amick, MPH, MA , The Kinsey Institute for Research in Sex, Gender, and Reproduction, Indiana University, Bloomington, IN
Brandon Hill, BA , The Kinsey Institute for Research in Sex, Gender, and Reproduction, Indiana University, Bloomington, IN
Stephanie Sanders, PhD , The Kinsey Institute for Research in Sex, Gender, and Reproduction, Indiana University, Bloomington, IN
Kimberly McBride, PhD, MA , Academic Edge, Inc., Bloomington, IN
Background: Consistent and correct use of condoms is considered an effective method of HIV and STI prevention. The purpose of the present study was to assess how college-aged men and women feel about condoms.

Methods: An online questionnaire was completed by 674 college-aged men and women. It incorporated modified items from two existing scales with the addition of gender-neutral and condom positive items to develop the Brief Condom Attitudes Scale (BCAS).

Results: The BCAS consists of 18 Likert-type items comprising 4 factors, accounting for 59% of the variance: Condoms as Interruptive (F1), Condoms as Erotic (F2), Condoms as Negative (F3), and Condoms as Protective (F4). Compared to women, men reported greater agreement on factor 1, factor3, and factor 4. A gender difference was not found for Condoms as Erotic (F4).

Conclusions: The BCAS appears to be a reliable measure for assessing college-aged men and women's attitudes about condoms. Future research on the relationship between positive attitudes about condoms and their influence on sexual behavior are likely to generate innovative avenues sexual health promotion and HIV/STI prevention.

Learning Areas:
Administer health education strategies, interventions and programs
Public health or related education
Public health or related research
Social and behavioral sciences

Learning Objectives:
1-Describe the importance of examining attitudes toward condoms for prevention research especially toward the development of sexual health interventions and behaviorally modifications. 2-Discuss the implications of assessing condom attitudes to inform health promotion efforts and HIV/STI prevention research. 3-Identify and discuss implications for future research on the topic of condom attitude assessment.

Keywords: College Students, STD Prevention

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

Qualified on the content I am responsible for because: I am on this project.
Any relevant financial relationships? No

I agree to comply with the American Public Health Association Conflict of Interest and Commercial Support Guidelines, and to disclose to the participants any off-label or experimental uses of a commercial product or service discussed in my presentation.

Back to: 3263.0: The Next Generation of HIV/AIDS Scholars: Student Poster Session 1