College Students Use Implicit Personality Theory Instead of Safer Sex¹

Abstract

Many college students engage in high levels of unsafe sexual behavior that puts them at risk for HIV infection. To better understand the dynamics underlying college students' unsafe behavior, focus group discussions were conducted with 308 students (146 men and 162 women). The results showed that, instead of consistently using condoms, many college students use implicit personality theories to judge the riskiness of potential sexual partners. Specifically, partners whom college students know and like are not perceived to be risky, even if what students know about these individuals is irrelevant to HIV status. The students determine the riskiness of partners they do not know well based on superficial characteristics that are also generally unrelated to HIV status. Therefore, AIDS prevention interventions for college students must expose the ineffectiveness of the students' use of implicit personality theories to determine potential partners' riskiness, and the “know your partner” safer sex guideline should be abandoned.

One Measure, Two Motives. Prediction of Condom Use and Interaction Between Two Prevention Goals Among Heterosexual Young Adults: Preventing Pregnancy and/or Sexually Transmitted Diseases

“…It may be questioned whether the inclusion of this socio-emotional aspect has affected the outcomes. For example, evidence shows that individuals may invoke implicit personality theories of their partners' STD risk in deciding whether or not to practice safer sex with a particular partner (Williams, et al, 1992). Such implicit theories may induce these individuals to conclude that sexual partners who are attractive are less likely to pose a risk of STD infection.…”

Teens speak out about HIV/AIDS: Focus group discussions about risk and decision-making

“…Similarly, Williams et al [18] found that college students used "implicit personality theory" in their sexual decision-making. Students in their sample based decisions about sexual activity on whether they knew and liked a person, even though these things were unrelated to whether or not this person was risky as a sexual partner.…”

Sexual double standards: A review and methodological critique of two decades of research

“…If a woman believes her partner endorses a double standard, she is less likely to provide a condom during intercourse (Hynie & Lydon, 1995). Women who are contraceptively prepared outside of a long-term committed relationship are perceived as indicating a willingness and desire to engage in casual sexual intercourse (Williams et al, 1992). This preparedness is less acceptable for women than for men because of differing standards for judging the appropriateness of casual sex for men and women.…”