Situational factors and thought processes associated with unprotected intercourse in heterosexual students

Abstract

Heterosexual students were asked to recall two sexual encounters from the preceding six months: one in which they had unprotected intercourse ('unsafe' encounter) and one in which they resisted a strong temptation to have unprotected intercourse ('safe' encounter). The aims were to record justifications for unprotected intercourse that respondents had given themselves during the unsafe encounter and to identify factors that distinguished between the encounters. In respondents recalling an unsafe encounter (n = 284), the most common self-justification reported was that there was no need for concern since measures to avoid pregnancy had been taken. The first factor that emerged from a Factor Analysis of the self-justification data involved using perceptible characteristics to infer that the partner was unlikely to be infected. Among respondents recalling both encounters (n = 173), there was a trend for type of partner to distinguish between the encounters. With this variable controlled (n = 115), desires, knowledge of condom availability, communication about condom use, degree of boredom, and level of intoxication differentiated between the encounters. The results are discussed in relation to those obtained in our earlier study of gay men.

Alcohol use and risky sexual behavior among college students and youth: evaluating the evidence.

“…Consistent with this interpretation, we found that the total effect of alcohol use on condom use was -.04 and not significant, but that its direct effect after controlling for partner intimacy ratings was -.17 and significant. Findings reported by Gold et al (1992), who reported the only significant within-persons effect for condom use among the previously reviewed stud ies, lend further credence to this interpretation. The key difference between their study and the remaining studies was that they controlled for partner intimacy by limiting their analyses to the subset of individuals who had equally intimate partners across the two occasions.…”

Alcohol and HIV sexual risk behaviors among injection drug users

“…Gold et al (1992) found that the level of intoxication reported on two different sexual encounters was associated with whether the respondent had engaged in unprotected sex during those encounters. Graves and Leigh (1995) found no significant relationship between intoxication and unprotected sex when they compared the proportion of unprotected sexual encounters under the influence of alcohol vs. those without alcohol, even though they noted a global association between heavy-drinking and unprotected sex.…”

“Hookups”: Characteristics and correlates of college students' spontaneous and anonymous sexual experiences

“…Desiderato & Crawford (1995) found that the frequency and quantity of college students' alcohol consumption was associated with the number of sexual partners in the last 11 weeks, and that alcohol consumption preceded the last occurrence of sex. Gold, Karmiloff-Smith, Skinner, and Morton (1992) found intoxication to be a predictive factor at all points in casual sexual encounters (from the beginning of the encounter to the period of sexual contact); the highest level of intoxication occurred at the start of sexual intercourse. Moreover, males and females were found to be more likely to consume alcohol when they were less well acquainted with their partner (Temple & Leigh, 1992).…”