Citation
Crosby, Richard A. & Danner, Fred (2008). Adolescents' sexually transmitted disease protective attitudes predict sexually transmitted disease acquisition in early adulthood. Journal of School Health. vol. 78 (6) pp. 310-313Abstract
Background: Estimates suggest that about 48% of nearly 19 million cases of sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) occurring annually in the United States are acquired by persons aged 15-24 years. The purpose of this study was to test the hypothesis that adolescents’ attitudes about protecting themselves from STDs predict their laboratory-confirmed prevalence of STDs in early adulthood.Methods: Wave 3 of the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health assessed Chlamydia trachomatis, Neisseria gonorrhoeae, and Trichomonas vaginalis. This wave 3 data were regressed on data collected in wave 1 (when those followed were teens). A single-item measure (with a 5-point response option) assessed adolescents’ attitude: “It would be a big hassle to do the things necessary to completely protect yourself from getting an STD.”
Results: Valid urine specimens were provided by 8297 adolescents who also completed the self-reported measures needed for this study. Overall, 6.4% of the weighted sample tested positive for at least 1 of the 3 STDs. Controlling for age, gender, minority status, and age of sexual debut (all of which are well-established predictors of STD prevalence), attitude toward STD protection achieved significance (P < .001). Each additional point on the 5-point scale increased adolescents’ odds of testing positive for an STD in early adulthood by about 13%. Of interest, the attitudinal measure did not interact with any of the other variables.
Conclusions: Findings provide evidence suggesting that safer sex programs may benefit adolescents by fostering positive attitudes toward practices that avert STD acquisition.
URL
http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.1746-1561.2008.00307.x/fullKeyword(s)
STD/STIReference Type
Journal ArticleJournal Title
Journal of School HealthAuthor(s)
Crosby, Richard A.Danner, Fred