Perceived barriers and advantages in the use of the condom in spanish university students.
Ballester, Rafael*,1, Gil, Mª Dolores2, Bravo, Jose Miguel1, Edo, Maria Teresa1, Guirado, Mari Carmen1, 1 Dept. Basic and Clinical Psychology and Psychobiology. Facultad de Ciencias Humanas y Sociales. Universitat Jaume I., Castellón, Castellón, Spain2 Dept. Developmental and Educational Psychology. Facultad de Psicología. Universitat de València (Estudi General)., Valencia, Valencia, Spain
ABSTRACT- Introduction: The sexual transmission of the HIV infection among young people continues to increase alarmingly in that each year there are several million newly infected subjects. Far from being sufficiently informed and aware of the potential risk of AIDS, university students manifest a high prevalence of sexual activity involving the risk of HIV infection; using condoms could reduce this risk. Objective: Our objective is to show the degree of use of the condom in various sexual practices and what may be the barriers and advantages perceived by Spanish university students in its use. Method: The sample was made up of 186 Spanish university students. Of the total sample, 28% were men, 72% were women. The average age was 22.3 (DT=4,4). All the subjects were individually given the AIDS Prevention Questionnaire (APQ) by Ballester et al. (2004). Results: Only 48% of the students always used a condom in vaginal sexual intercourse. The percentage is barely 14% in anal penetration and only 3% in oral sex. The main barriers or inconveniences in the use of the condom were: loss of sensation (37%), fear of a possible breakage or the poor condition of the condom, (33%), interruption of the sexual act (30%), difficulty in obtaining them (not carrying them when needed, being far from where they are sold...) (25%) and their price (18%). The main advantages indicated were their effectiveness at preventing HIV infection and other STDs (93%), the prevention of unwanted pregnancies (81%), the fact that they are easy to obtain (51%) and the absence of side-effects (47%). Conclusion: It is important to continue research into the reasons why university students do not use condoms in their sexual activities. In the preventive interventions it is of prime importance to combat some erroneous beliefs which augment the perceived inconveniences associated with the use of the condom. There is a need to highlight its potential advantages. Furthermore, health policies should help to diminish barriers such as the price of condoms and make them more readily available. Study financed by Fundacion para la Investigacion y Prevencion del SIDA en Espana (Ministry of Health). (Exp. 12436/03).
Key words: University students, prevention, AIDS, condoms