Recalling sexual behavior: A methodological analysis of memory recall bias via interview using the diary as the gold standard

This study examined the effect of time lag on the validity of retrospective self‐reports of sexual behavior. Seventy‐five heterosexual students (44 women, 31 men) made daily recordings of sexual behavior, condom use, and alcohol or substance use for 1 month. Ability of respondents to recall sexual behavior recorded during this period was assessed at 1, 2, and 3 months after diary completion using recall interviews (25 interviewed at each interval). For vaginal intercourse, total recall error was significantly greater at 3 months than at 1 month post‐diary. For all other variables assessed, the 2‐ and 3‐month time intervals did not produce significant increases in total recall error. Higher frequency of vaginal intercourse, orgasm, and alcohol use prior to sexual activity were associated with total recall error for some but not all behaviors and outcomes. The results provide a partial validation of the diary‐interview recall model as a method for studying recall error.     

Recalling sexual behavior: a methodological analysis of memory recall bias via interview using the diary as the gold standard

This study examined the effect of time lag on the validity of retrospective self-reports of sexual behavior. Seventy-five heterosexual students (44 women, 31 men) made daily recordings of sexual behavior, condom use, and alcohol or substance use for 1 month. Ability of respondents to recall sexual behavior recorded during this period was assessed at 1, 2, and 3 months after diary completion using recall interviews (25 interviewed at each interval). For vaginal intercourse, total recall error was significantly greater at 3 months than at 1 month post-diary. For all other variables assessed, the 2- and 3-month time intervals did not produce significant increase in total recall error. Higher frequency of vaginal intercourse, orgasm, and alcohol use prior to sexual activity were associated with total recall error for some but not all behaviors and outcomes. The results provide a partial validation of the diary-interview recall model as a method for studying recall error.     

Sexual Activity and Weekly Contraceptive Discontinuation and Selection Among Young Adult Women in Michigan

Understanding young women’s contraceptive and pregnancy prevention behaviors is important for helping women and their partners control if and when they have children. Prior research on associations between patterns of sexual activity and contraceptive behaviors is limited. We assessed the influence of recent sexual activity on discontinuation and selection of specific contraceptive methods. We used weekly data from the Relationship Dynamics and Social Life (RDSL) study, a longitudinal 2.5-year population-based project that sampled woman ages 18 and 19 (N = 1,003) in one Michigan county. We estimated logistic and multinomial regression models that accounted for clustering of weekly observations within partnerships and women. Weekly discontinuation of longer-acting methods declined with increasing sexual activity in the past month, as did discontinuation of shorter-acting hormonal methods. Sexual activity was associated with decreased selection of condoms relative to other methods. Future research into life events that lead to changes in the frequency of sexual activity may provide insight into times when women are at risk of contraceptive discontinuation. These findings underscore the importance of anticipatory guidance in contraceptive counseling so that when women change their contraceptive behavior they are equipped in advance with resources to make safe transitions between methods.     

Effects of intensive longitudinal data collection on pregnancy and contraceptive use

We use an experiment based on the relationship dynamics and social life study of sexual behavior, pregnancy, and contraceptive use to investigate whether participation in weekly self-reports over one year result in differential effects on related behaviors and attitudes, compared to participation in a one-time follow-up interview requiring retrospective self-reporting for the prior year. We randomly assigned 200 subjects to either a control group or a journal group. All subjects were interviewed at the beginning of the study (baseline interview) and 12 months later (closeout interview). Subjects in the journal group also completed a five-minute web- or phone-based survey every week during the 12-month study period. We found no statistically significant difference in pregnancy rates across the two groups at closeout. Contrary to our expectation, the control group experienced a slightly larger increase in having ever used a contraceptive method, although this was mainly due to increases in the least effective methods, such as condoms and withdrawal. Respondents in the weekly interview group became slightly more positive toward childbearing in terms of one specific attitude measure, but not for the vast majority of measures. We conclude that intensive longitudinal data collection does not appear to have a large or consistent impact on respondents’ pregnancy, contraceptive use, or related attitudes, relative to the more standard longitudinal approach.     

Compulsory residential care: An examination of treatment improvement of individual and family functioning

The aim of the present study was to examine the treatment progress of both adolescent's and their families' functioning in a new compulsory residential treatment program. The sample consisted of 339 admitted adolescents (56.3% boys). The mean age at time of entry was 15.69 (SD = 1.30). Adolescents stayed on average 9.42 months (SD = 4.66) in a new residential treatment program. Data on adolescents' internalizing and externalizing problems were assessed using self-reports, parent reports, and group care worker reports. In addition, adolescents reported their substance use and delinquency and parents also reported family functioning and level of perceived parental stress. The findings revealed a significant decrease in adolescents' self-reported internalizing and externalizing problems, delinquency, and substance use. According to parent ratings, a significant improvement was found concerning adolescents' problem behaviors during treatment. However, according care worker ratings, adolescents showed no improvement on internalizing problems and showed an increase in externalizing problems. Concerning families, although there was no improvement in family functioning, parental stress significantly improved over time. Further research should examine whether improvements experienced during treatment are maintained after treatment.     

Depression and Parenting by Nonoffending Mothers of Children Who Experienced Sexual Abuse

Parenting may be one mechanism by which depression in nonoffending mothers impacts child emotional and behavioral adjustment after sexual abuse. This study examined the relationship between self-reported maternal depression and parenting behaviors by nonoffending mothers of children who experienced sexual abuse. The participants were 204 nonoffending biological mother–child pairs recruited from a clinic providing services for children who experienced sexual abuse. The mothers completed pretreatment self-report measures of demographic information, depression, and parenting behaviors. Children (7 to 17 years) completed a measure of mothers’ parenting behaviors. Mothers with clinically high levels of self-reported depression employed more inconsistent parenting behavior and provided poorer monitoring/supervision of their children than mothers without clinically high levels of self-reported depression. Implications for clinical practice and future research are discussed.     

Relationships Between Social-Emotional Intelligence and Sexual Risk Behaviors in Adolescent Girls

Social-emotional intelligence (SEI) has been linked with a number of health behaviors in adolescent populations. However, little is known about the influence of SEI on sexual behavior. This study examined associations between three indicators of SEI (intrapersonal skills, interpersonal skills, stress management skills) and adolescent girls’ sexual risk behaviors. Data come from a cross-sectional sample of sexually active adolescent girls (ages 13 to 17 years) at high risk for pregnancy (N = 253), recruited from health care clinics in a Midwest metropolitan area during 2007 and 2008. Results of multivariable regression models controlling for participants’ age and race/ethnicity indicated that each aspect of SEI was related to distinct sexual risk behaviors. Specifically, girls with greater intrapersonal skills had significantly fewer male sex partners in the past six months (b = ?0.16). Participants with greater interpersonal skills reported earlier communication with their sexual partner about sexual risk (b = 0.14), and those with a better ability to manage stress reported more consistent condom use (b = 0.31). Study findings suggest that SEI may provide a protective buffer against sexual risk behaviors. Building adolescent girls’ social and emotional skills may be an effective strategy for reducing their risk for early pregnancy and sexually transmitted infections.     

Adolescent women's contraceptive decision making.

A modified rational decision model incorporating salient events and social influences (particularly from sexual partners) is used to analyze adolescent women's consistent use of oral contraceptives (OCs) over a six-month period. Data are taken from a panel study of 308 clients of an inner-city family planning clinic. Expected OC use was computed for each subject on the basis of subjective expected utility (SEU) theory, and is found in multivariate analyses to be a significant predictor of actual OC use. In addition, variables representing baseline and follow-up partner influences, the salience of pregnancy for the subject, and positive side effects of OCs during the first months of use are found to predict OC use. Partner's support of OC use during follow-up and positive side effects of OCs are found to predict OC use among subjects for whom OC use was not the expected decision according to baseline SEU. Implications of the findings for models of adolescents' contraceptive behavior and for clinicians are discussed.     

Measuring the Frequency of Regular Behaviors: Comparing the "Typical Week" to the "Past Week"

Social scientists often measure the frequency with which people perform behaviors executed regularly throughout their daily lives, but there is no standard approach to this measurement task: some investigators have asked respondents about their behavior during a "usual" or "typical" day, week, or month, whereas others sought to describe the same sorts of behavior patterns by asking about the most recent day, week, or month. This paper compares the validity of "typical" week and "past" week reports for assessing habitual behavior patterns using data from the 1989 National Election Study Pilot, in which respondents were randomly assigned to report TV news program and newspaper exposure during either a typical week or the past week. The predictive validity of the measures was assessed using objective tests of current events knowledge and identification of political figures, as well as self–assessments of political knowledge. The typical week questions consistently manifested superior predictive validity, especially among the most educated respondents.     

Some aspects of prostitution

This study was based on data collected from 87 men during and immediately following participation in a counseling program aimed at assisting them to reduce sexual behaviors associated with high HIV risk. All the men reported having engaged in same‐gender anal or oral sex without condoms during the year prior to enrollment. Three‐month retrospective reports of sexual behavior, solicited just after participation, were compared with reports collected weekly during the same three‐month period. Accuracy of recall over an ensemble of 10 behavior items was quite low, with amount of error positively associated with behavior frequency. In general, exaggerated reports were associated with low‐frequency behavior and underreports with high‐frequency behavior. Because of observed differences in the average frequency of occurrence of the various specific types of sexual behavior, adjustment for event frequency was required to provide adequate analysis of between‐behavior differences in memory error. Estimated functional relationships between behavior frequency and average memory error illustrated that for sexual activity occurring between 1 and 20 times in the three‐month period, there was a significant association between the HTV‐risk level of a behavior and the average extent to which the behavior was forgotten (i.e., underreported). After event‐frequency adjustment, anal activity without condoms—the behavior believed to entail the highest level of risk for HIV transmission, and the behavior about which the counseling program provided the least ambiguous cues regarding risk—was associated with the greatest underreporting error, and the ensemble of unprotected behaviors (i.e., those unaccompanied by condom usage) involved significantly greater underreporting than did protected behaviors. Error rates over the ensemble of behaviors were strikingly low for zero‐frequency events, suggesting the utility of dichotomous ever/never measures in research evaluating activity levels and behavior change. Other analysis techniques for reducing potential recall bias, allowing finer evaluations of behavior frequency and change, were also discussed.     

Religiosity,Sexual Behavior,and Contraceptive Use of College Females

Abstract

A multidimensional religiosity scale and a sexual behavior and contraceptive use inventory was completed by 231 female college students. Respondents were classified into groups according to sexual behavior and contraceptive use. The three sexual behavior groups were: females not participating in intercourse during the preceding calendar year; females participating in intercourse with one partner only during the preceding calendar year; and females participating in intercourse with more than one partner during the preceding calendar year. The three contraceptive use groups were: females who had used intercourse-independent methods at last intercourse; females who had used intercourse-dependent methods at last intercourse; and females who had not used a contraceptive or had relied on a relatively ineffective method at last intercourse. Results of two separate analyses indicate that: (1) a set of religiosity items was able to significantly (p © .001) discriminate among the three sexual behavior groups, and (2) a second set of religiosity items was able to significantly (p © .001) discriminate among the three contraceptive use groups. Thus, it seems that females differing in sexual behavior and contraceptive use can be distinguished on the basis of religiosity.     

Men Sexually Interested in Transwomen (MSTW): Gendered Embodiment and the Construction of Sexual Desire

Unreliable self‐reporting of sexual behavior has been suggested as a major cause of variance in survey research. In addition, differing gender‐related biases are thought to account for discrepancies in reports of oral and anal sex. Insufficient attention, however, has been given to assessing the reliability of the sexual partner's reports. Data obtained from 70 couples concerning 68 sexual behaviors was reviewed. Four different reliability indices yielded moderate to substantial agreement. These included a simple percentage criterion of 87%, a Kappa of .67, and conditional probabilities of .77 and.91. Previously reported discrepancies in the reporting of oral and anal sex were not found. Kappa was found to be superior to simple percentage agreement, but produced overly conservative reliability estimates when derived from behaviors that occur at either high or low base‐rates. The two conditional probability indices are proposed for use in conjunction with Kappa to evaluate the reliability of partner data.     

HIV Infections Among Older Male Clients of Low-Cost Commercial Sex Venues in Southern China

This study aimed to identify the association of unsafe sex behaviors with HIV infection among the male clients who purchase commercial sex in low-cost sex venues. A cross-sectional study was conduct in a southern province of China among male, low-cost commercial sex clients, who were over 50 years old. Participants were interviewed using a structured questionnaire and had completed HIV testing. Among the 3,485 participants, the prevalence of HIV was 2.96% (95% confidence interval: 2.40–3.52%). The associated risk factors studied for HIV infection included (1) not currently married; (2) use of counterfeit TCMs with sildenafil; (3) noncondom use during commercial purchased sex; and (4) recent engagement of commercial sex within past week. Given the high prevalence of HIV infection among the study group, more political policy intervention and health education should be considered for the identified subpopulation (over 50-year-old men in low-cost commercial venues, counterfeit TCMs with sildenafil and noncondom use).     

The Association Between Sexual Behavior and Affect: Moderating Factors in Young Women

Sexual behavior is associated with increased positive affect and decreased negative affect. However, contextual variables such as partner type, behavior type, and condom use may moderate these associations. The goal of the present research was to examine these contextual moderators using monthly longitudinal data from a sample of young women. Female first-year college students (N = 477) completed monthly assessments of their sexual behaviors and positive and negative affect. Participants reported more negative affect in months in which they engaged in sexual behavior compared to months in which they did not. This association was moderated by partner type, such that only sexual behavior with casual partners was associated with increased negative affect. Participants reported more positive affect during months with kissing/touching only compared to months without sexual behavior; however, this association did not differ significantly from the association between oral/vaginal sex and positive affect. Condom use did not moderate the association between vaginal sex and positive or negative affect. In this sample of young women transitioning to college, engaging in sexual behavior was generally associated with negative affect; however, changes in affect depended on partner type and sexual behaviors. Findings have implications for sexual health education.     

The Association of Sexual Behavior with Externalizing Behaviors in a Community Sample of Prepubertal Children

Abstract

On the basis of the problem-behavior theory for adolescence, we hypothesized that already during childhood sexual behavior is associated with (non-sexual) externalizing behaviors and tested the hypothesis in a community sample. In the context of a postal questionnaire survey of 6-10 year old children, the parents of 349 girls and 326 boys completed the Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL). The CBCL Sex Problems scale did not differ between genders, ethnic groups, or age groups. For both girls and boys, the scores on the Sex Problems scale correlated significantly but modestly (maximum r = 0.35) with all other CBCL scales; only in boys did the correlations with externalizing behaviors exceed those with other scales. We conclude that children from a community sample who show sexual behavior as defined by the CBCL tend to be the ones with increased behavioral/emotional problems in general, with only modest specificity in symptomatology.     

The pinney sexual satisfaction inventory

The purpose of the present investigation was to (a) develop a reliable self‐report questionnaire that assesses women's sexual satisfaction and (b) investigate the correlates of sexual satisfaction in women. A total of 275 college‐aged women completed the Pinney Sexual Satisfaction Inventory (PSSI) and were also assessed on a variety of sexual behaviors, experiences, and attitudes. The results supported the internal reliability of the PSSI, and evidence of covergent validity was provided by strong positive correlations between the PSSI and other measures of sexual satisfaction. A factor analysis revealed two underlying dimensions of the PSSI: General Sexual Satisfaction and Satisfaction with Partner. The variables that were most highly correlated with the PSSI were relationship commitment, orgasm consistency, frequency of intercourse, and effectiveness of contraceptive device. These findings have implications for further use of the PSSI in research and clinical practice.     

Is Being Popular a Risky Proposition?

Longitudinal associations between social preference, perceived popularity, and risk behaviors (smoking, alcohol use, and sexual activity) were examined in a sample of high school students. Social preference did not predict any of the risk behaviors assessed, although the interaction between gender and social preference was predictive of sexual behavior. Perceived popularity in Grade 10 was predictive of increased alcohol use and sexual activity in Grade 12 for both boys and girls. A reciprocal relationship was found for boys, in which smoking in Grade 10 also predicted gains in perceived popularity over time. Furthermore, results suggested that gains in perceived popularity may be associated with subsequent losses in social preference over time, lending support for the “cycle of popularity” observed by Eder. Implications are discussed, including the personal impact of risk behaviors on perceived popular teens, as well as the broader influence their behavior may have on their less popular counterparts.     

Coitus‐dependent contraceptives: Factors associated with effective use

The factors associated with adequate contraceptive use among university women relying on coitus‐dependent contraceptives were examined. Sixty‐nine sexually active women between the ages of 18 and 34 completed daily logs of their sexual activity, contraceptive behavior and basal body temperature over three menstrual cycles. Contraceptive use was analyzed by menstrual cycle phase and results indicated that frequency of use was significantly higher during the ovulatory phase as compared to the menstrual period. Additional findings using discriminant function analysis indicated that compared to risk takers, non‐risk takers were more likely to initiate sexual intercourse, have more orgasms, have a non‐Catholic background, be living with their partners and have been in their relationships longer. These data suggest that women in less stable relationships and with more sexual inhibitions may be more at risk of an unwanted pregnancy.     

Truth and consequences: using the bogus pipeline to examine sex differences in self-reported sexuality

Men report more permissive sexual attitudes and behavior than do women. This experiment tested whether these differences might result from false accommodation to gender norms (distorted reporting consistent with gender stereotypes). Participants completed questionnaires under three conditions. Sex differences in self-reported sexual behavior were negligible in a bogus pipeline condition in which participants believed lying could be detected, moderate in an anonymous condition, and greatest in an exposure threat condition in which the experimenter could potentially view participants responses. This pattern was clearest for behaviors considered less acceptable for women than men (e.g., masturbation, exposure to hardcore & softcore erotica). Results suggest that some sex differences in self-reported sexual behavior reflect responses influenced by normative expectations for men and women.     

The impact of touch-tone data entry on reports of HIV and STD risk behaviors in telephone interviews

Respondents concerns about privacy can decrease reporting of HIV and STD risk behaviors in general population telephone surveys. The purpose of this paper is to describe the results of an experimental study evaluating whether one method for increasing privacy, touch-tone data entry (TTDE), is effective in increasing estimates of sexual behaviors from a population-based survey. We conducted a random-digit-dial telephone survey of adults in New Jersey (n = 405), with half the respondents using TTDE for answering sexual behavior questions. TTDE led to increased reports of same-sex sexual behavior, certain HIV and STD risk factors, and concern about one s risk for HIV and STD transmission. TTDE also narrowed the difference between men s and women s reports of the number of different sexual partners over the past 10 years. The feasibility and limitations of TTDE are discussed, as well as possible alternative interpretations that consider the impact of TTDE on the dynamics of the interaction between the respondent and the interviewer.