Young adults' sources of contraceptive information: variations based on demographic characteristics and sexual risk behaviors.

OBJECTIVES: Sexual information sources used by young adults can influence their contraceptive knowledge and behaviors, yet little is known about sources most frequently used by young adults, especially by groups with histories of sexual risk involvement. STUDY DESIGN: Nationally representative data from 1800 unmarried young adults, aged 18-29 years, were analyzed to (1) examine the sources of contraceptive information most frequently used by young adults and (2) assess variations (if any) in source use based on demographic characteristics and sexual risk history (determined based on past sexual behaviors). RESULTS: "Doctors/nurses" was the most frequently used contraceptive information source reported by young adults. Significant variations existed in source use based on demographic characteristics and sexual risk history. Females were more likely to obtain contraceptive information from health care professionals, whereas males were more likely to report friends, partners, internet and television/radio as their frequently used source. Young adults with a sexual risk history were more likely to rely on doctors/nurses and less likely to report friends and internet as their frequently used source than those without a sexual risk history. Receiving contraceptive information from doctors/nurses was associated with greater accuracy in knowledge about contraceptive use and efficacy as compared to all other sources. CONCLUSIONS: Young adults' use of specific contraceptive information sources can vary based on their demographic characteristics and sexual risk involvement. Future research should identify better strategies to connect young adults, especially young males, with sexual risk histories to more reliable sources of information.

The Latin American cohabitation boom, 1970­2007.

The article describes the rise of unmarried cohabitation in Latin American countries during the last 30 years of the twentieth century, both at the national and regional levels. It documents that this major increase occurred in regions with and without traditional forms of cohabitation alike. In addition, the striking degree of catching up of cohabitation among the better-educated population segments is illustrated. The connections between these trends and economic (periods of high inflation) and cultural (reduction of stigmas in ethical domains) factors are discussed. The conclusion is that the periods of inflation and hyperinflation may have been general catalysts, but no clear indications of correlation were found between such economic factors and the rise in cohabitation. The shift toward more tolerance for hitherto stigmatized forms of conduct (e.g., homosexuality, euthanasia, abortion, singleparent household) is in line with the rise of cohabitation in regions of Argentina, Chile, and Brazil where cohabitation used to be uncommon. Further rises in cohabitation during the first decade of the twenty-first century are expected in a number of countries (e.g., mexico) despite conditions of much lower inflation.

"Birds of passage" or "career" women? Thoughts on the life cycle of the eighteenth-century European servant.

Frequently eighteenth-century service is described as a life-cycle stage used to build up the financial wherewithal to set up house. As such it was central to the way youth or girlhood was traversed, and studies of adolescent years rightly emphasise the importance of service. However, this narrative, while largely accurate, is also problematic. What happened when service did not end with marriage, or when a woman remained single well into adulthood? In practice, servants were found among both the married and single, and among the young and the old. Concentrating on the eighteenth century, and incorporating material from Nordic Europe, this article teases out some of the nuances in the context and experience of service that partially disrupt the established narrative.

Intimacy and the life cycle in the marital relationships of the Scottish elite during the long eighteenth century.

Traditionally marriage has been treated as one step in the life cycle, between youth and old age, singleness and widowhood. Yet an approach to the life cycle that treats marriage as a single step in a person's life is overly simplistic. During the eighteenth century many marriages were of considerable longevity during which time couples aged together and power dynamics within the home were frequently renegotiated to reflect changing circumstances. This study explores how intimacy developed and changed over the life cycle of marriage and what this meant for power, through a study of the correspondence of two elite Scottish couples.

Cohabitation: parents following in their children's footsteps?

As cohabitation has risen dramatically in the past few decades among adults of all ages, it is possible that middle-and older-aged parents are "learning" cohabitation from their young adult children. The present study uses this theory as a guiding framework to determine if parents are more likely to cohabit themselves following the start of a young adult child's cohabitation. Using three waves of the National Survey of Families and Households (N = 275), results show that union formation patterns are influenced by young adult children among parents who are single at their child's 18th birthday. Parents are less likely to marry than remain single and are much more likely to cohabit than marry if they have a young adult child who cohabits. These results show support for the hypotheses.

The educational gradient of childbearing within cohabitation in Europe.

Nearly every European Country has experienced some increase in nonmarital childbearing, largely due to increasing births within cohabitation. Relatively few studies in Europe, however, investigate the educational gradient of childbearing within cohabitation or how it changed over time. Using retrospective union and fertility histories, we employ competing risk hazard models to examine the educational gradient of childbearing in cohabitation in eight countries across europe. In all countries studied, birth risks within cohabitation demonstrated a negative educational gradient. When directly comparing cohabiting fertility with marital fertility, the negative educational gradient persists in all countries except Italy, although differences were not significant in Austria, France, and West Germany. To explain these findings, we present an alternative explanation for the increase in childbearing within cohabitation that goes beyond the explanation of the Second Demographic Transition and provides a new interpretation of the underlying mechanisms that may influence childbearing within cohabitation.

"One man one job": the marriage ban and the employment of women teachers in Irish primary schools.

In 1932, the Irish government, facing an economic downturn, introduced a marriage ban which required that female primary school teachers were required to resign on marriage. This followed a series of restrictive legislative measures adopted by Irish governments throughout the 1920s which sought to limit women's participation in public life and the public sector. Such a requirement emerged in several countries in response to high unemployment and applied principally to women's white-collar occupations, leading some commentators to argue that it stemmed from a social consensus rather than an economic rationale. Despite opposition to the ban from the Irish National Teachers' Organisation (INTO) on the basis that it was unconstitutional, would lead to fewer marriages and that married women were in fact more suited to teaching children, it remained in place until 1958. Although the ban is much referred to as part of the gender ideology that informed legislation in the early years of independent Ireland, the particular history of married women teachers has been little researched in the academic context. Over 50 years since the rescinding of the ban, this article examines its impact through an analysis of primary sources, including government cabinet minutes and the public commentary of the INTO and positions this history within the international context.

Individual interviews with African-American women regarding condom use: a pilot study.

African-American women between 25 and 34 years of age are disproportionately affected by HIV/AIDS. Current prevention techniques, including education, have not had a significant influence on decreasing the rates of HIV and increasing safer sexual practices among some African-American women. This pilot study is one step towards increasing the understanding of this serious problem and developing effective interventions to stem the tide of HIV infection in African-American women. A grounded theory approach was used to address the process that unmarried, heterosexual, African-American women used to negotiate condom use with their sexual partner. Major concepts, connections between the categories, and theoretical codes are identified in this study and can be used to predict, speculate, explain, and understand the reported behavior of African-American women in negotiating condom use with their sexual partner.

Seroprevalence of Toxoplasma gondii in unmarried women in Qazvin, Islamic Republic of Iran.

In a cross-sectional study, we evaluated the seroprevalence of Toxoplasma gondii among 400 women referred to Qazvin community health centre laboratory for pre-marriage examinations. Indirect immunofluorescent antibody test was used to detect IgG anti-toxoplasma. Titres > or = 1: 20 were considered positive. The overall seropositivity was 34%. Mean age was significantly higher in seropositive women (P < 0.05). Seropositivity was highest among unemployed women (38.3%) and lowest among students (22.6%), and was significantly higher in women with less than high-school education (P < 0.05). With two-thirds of these unmarried women seronegative, they represent a high-risk group in pregnancy. Such women need to be educated to prevent congenital toxoplasmosis.

New plans for housing in urban Kenya, 1939-63.

Until about 1939, guided by a policy of trusteeship, the colonial government in Kenya limited the number of Africans in urban areas. As elsewhere in East and Central Africa, employers and municipalities were supposed to provide only 'bachelor' housing for unaccompanied African men. After 1939, encouraged by London, the Kenyan government began to promote a policy of development which implied urbanization. The permanent presence of Africans in towns was accepted, as was the growing responsibility of municipalities for the provision of housing for families as well as for bachelors. Municipalities began to plan for new types of housing, with more community facilities in new types of neighbourhood layouts. From the early 1940s, a wave of construction created many thousands of new dwellings in all major urban areas, but only a minority were designed for families. Many women and children were accommodated in 'bachelor' housing where they were compensated through rental subsidies. Although Kenya's housing initiatives in the late colonial period did not satisfy all of the rapidly growing urban needs, they were a substantial achievement.

Perceptions of unmarried young women regarding family size, sexually transmitted diseases at residential regional institutes in northeastern India.

This study sought to assess the knowledge and attitudes of young unmarried women regarding family size and sexually transmitted diseases, including HIV, in three residential regional institutes of northeastern India. The data is expected to help in reinforcing various methods of Information, Education and Communication (IEC) implementation. A representative sample of 574 female students, 16-25 years of age, were interviewed by a pretested questionnaire to assess their knowledge of the determinants of family size and sexually transmitted diseases. Of the participants, 48.43% stated that the suitable age for marriage is > 18 years old for women. More than half the respondents stated that the interval between child birth should be 3-5 years. Most of the respondents (96.17%) were of the opinion that both parents are responsible for determining the number of children. Knowledge of STDs and HIV was found in 91.8% and 74.04% of respondents, respectively.

Psychosocial correlates of HIV risk behavior in adolescent girls.

OBJECTIVE: To present the preintervention data collected for a pilot HIV-prevention randomized controlled trial specifically developed for single, sexually active adolescent girls. DESIGN: Comparative, descriptive design using confidential self-administered questionnaires. SETTING: An urban family planning clinic that provided gynecologic services to adolescents. PARTICIPANTS: One hundred twenty-nine single, sexually active adolescent girls 15 to 19 years of age (44% minority, 34% economically disadvantaged). MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: In addition to demographics and risk behaviors, the following were assessed: HIV-related information (i.e., knowledge) and motivation to reduce risk (i.e., perceived vulnerability, readiness to change HIV risk behaviors, behavioral intentions, pros and cons of condom use, and confidence in condom use). RESULTS: Assessments revealed limited HIV-related knowledge, ambivalence regarding risk reduction, and considerable risk behaviors. Compared with girls at lower risk for HIV infection (i.e., consistent condom users), those at higher risk (i.e., inconsistent or noncondom-users) were more likely to be White and older and to have better HIV-related knowledge but less motivation to reduce risk (i.e., behavioral intentions to use condoms, condom-use confidence) than girls at lower risk. CONCLUSION: These data document (a) the need for HIV prevention interventions targeted to all sexually active adolescent girls and (b) the importance of including a motivational component in the intervention.

HIV prevention in single, urban women: condom-use readiness.

OBJECTIVE: To understand women's readiness to use condoms and their perceived pros and cons for condom use. DESIGN: Comparative, descriptive design guided by the Transtheoretical Model. SETTING: Data were collected at two urban primary health care centers in western New York. PARTICIPANTS: 364 single urban women with steady (main) or other (casual, concurrent, multiple, new) sexual partners. Most participants were young (mean age of 27 years), economically disadvantaged women of color. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Each participant completed an anonymous questionnaire that included items for the stage of change algorithm, decisional balance of the pros and cons of condom use, sexual history, and HIV risk information. RESULTS: Most women were in the early stages of change (not intending to use condoms), but those with other partners were further along in the stages of change for condom use than those with steady partners. The pros or advantages of condom use differed for these women depending on partner type. The change in the balance between the pros and cons occurred as theoretically predicted for women with steady and other partners. CONCLUSION: Effectiveness of HIV prevention interventions for women may be enhanced if they are tailored to both readiness to change and partner type.