Older boyfriends and girlfriends increase risk of sexual initiation in young adolescents.

PURPOSE: To explore the prevalence and impact of older boyfriends or girlfriends on sexual behavior in sixth graders (mean age 11.5 years). METHODS: Students in 19 ethnically diverse middle schools in an urban area were surveyed (n = 2829, response rate 68%). Instrument measured demographics, age of oldest boyfriend or girlfriend, unwanted sexual advances, peer norms, and sexual behavior. Students with older, same-age, or no boyfriend or girlfriend were compared on demographic and psychosocial variables using analysis of variance. Separate multivariate logistic regressions for both boys and girls were used to predict sexual behavior from demographics, psychosocial variables, and age categories of boyfriend or girlfriend. RESULTS: One-half of the respondents (56%) had never had a serious boyfriend or girlfriend, 35% reported that their oldest boyfriend or girlfriend was <2 years older than they, and 8.5% reported a partner > or =2 years older. Those reporting an older boyfriend or girlfriend were more likely to be Hispanic, were less acculturated, reported more unwanted sexual advances and more friends who were sexually active, and, among girls, were more likely to have experienced menarche. Overall, 4% of students reported ever having had sex. Students with an older boyfriend or girlfriend were over 30 times more likely than those with no boyfriend or girlfriend ever to have had sex (odds ratio = 33.8 for boys and 44.2 for girls). In the multivariate logistic regressions, peer norms about sexual behavior, having experienced unwanted sexual advances, and having a boyfriend or girlfriend were strongly associated with having had sex. CONCLUSIONS: Having an older boyfriend or girlfriend, although rare, is associated with early sexual onset and unwanted sexual activity in this population of sixth graders.

Sexual coercion among youth and young adults in Lima, Peru.

PURPOSE: To determine the prevalence and correlates of sexual coercion in young adults in Lima, Peru. METHODS: Lifetime sexual coercion and that at first sexual experience were studied in 629 sexually active young people, drawn from representative samples of 611 adolescents and 607 young adults. RESULTS: Almost half of the young women and a quarter of the young men in the study reported sexual coercion. In multiple logistic regression analyses, men and women who reported having been coerced at heterosexual initiation also reported more lifetime sexually transmitted diseases and a lower age at first sex than those not reporting coercion. Men who reported coercion at heterosexual initiation also reported a lower number of lifetime heterosexual partners and less sexual knowledge than men not coerced. CONCLUSION: Experiencing heterosexual initiation as coercive appears to be a marker for a riskier sexual career for both genders and for future homosexual behavior in men.

AIDS and condoms in Brasilia: a telephone survey.

A telephone survey was conducted to measure AIDS knowledge, media usage and condom attitudes and behaviors among 500 adults aged 18 to 49 in Brasilia, as well as to evaluate the feasibility of the telephone survey method in a developing country. The response rate was 91.6%. Respondents had good knowledge about correct modes of HIV transmission and prevention but also believed HIV was transmitted through blood donation, public toilets, swimming pools, and mosquito bites. TV and newspapers were the most important sources of information on health matters and AIDS, though health workers were considered the most credible sources of such information. Only 19% of sexual encounters in the 4 weeks prior to the survey included condoms. Single and younger respondents and those with more positive attitudes used condoms more frequently. More work is needed to identify appropriate messages to motivate people to use condoms. Telephone surveys regarding AIDS and sexual attitudes and behaviors are feasible in Brasilia, a planned community with universal telephone coverage.

PIP: This study examines the knowledge, attitudes, and behavior of AIDS and condom use in Brazil. Data were obtained during March-April 1994 from 500 completed telephone interviews among a sample of adults 18-49 years old living in the Plano Piloto sector of Brasilia, Brazil. The survey was conducted about 2 months after a national television and radio campaign on AIDS prevention, use of condoms, and avoidance of sharing syringes or needles. The questionnaire was based on questions from the Global Program on AIDS protocol. 99% of the sample reported that AIDS was one of the most important health problems facing Brazil today. The other health problems mentioned were cancer, famine, and cholera. 27% did not consider themselves at risk of AIDS. 2% considered themselves at great risk. The rest believed they had a small to moderate risk. 93% were aware that people with AIDS might appear healthy looking. 95% indicated sexual contact as a mode of transmission. 34% reported condom use as a means of avoiding AIDS transmission. 19% reported sexual abstinence as a preventive measure. 15% reported that people should inform others of their AIDS status as a way to avoid transmitting AIDS. 41% knew someone with AIDS. Less educated respondents held more inaccurate beliefs about the general means of transmission, but there were no educational differences about safe activities involving specific contact with persons infected with AIDS. Most misinformation pertained to public toilets, blood donations, use of swimming pools, and mosquito bites. 89% believed in a high risk at dental clinics used by AIDS patients. 72% were regular television users. Television and newspapers were the most important sources of information on AIDS and health. Only 19% used condoms in sexual activity occurring in the prior 4 weeks. Psychosocial factors were more important than demographic factors in predicting condom use.

Feasibility of a telephone survey to study a minority community: Hispanics in San Francisco.

In two random digit dialing surveys conducted among Hispanics using a modified Mitofsky-Waksberg procedure, we found low refusal rates (4.7% and 3.1%), low assumed noncontact rate (14.0% and 18.3%), and high response rates (88.6% and 88.4%) with limited investment in time (1.58 hours and 1.66 hours per completed interview). These results suggest that Hispanics are willing to participate in telephone surveys and that this method may be feasible and useful for research and evaluation purposes.

Stereotypes of smokers held by Hispanic and white non-Hispanic smokers.

A group of Hispanic and White non-Hispanic smokers were asked to report the stereotypes they hold of smokers in general. All respondents tended to think that smokers were Nervous, Friendly, and Sociable; although White non-Hispanics felt more certain than Hispanics that smokers were Friendly, Aggressive, Sociable, Attractive, and Feminine. Factor analyses of the responses showed three common (across ethnicity) factors: Sociability, Self-Presentation, and Nervousness. Only the Self-Presentation factor showed statistically significant differences between the two ethnic groups. The amount of cigarettes smoked had no effect on the stereotypes but the more highly acculturated Hispanics showed stereotypes that resembled those of the White non-Hispanics.