TYPES OF ADOLESCENT SEXUAL RELATIONSHIPS AND ASSOCIATED PERCEPTIONS ABOUT CONDOM USE

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to describe the various types o f adolescent sexual relationships and to examine the association betwe en the type of sexual relationship and adolescents' perceptions about the consistency with which other adolescents use condoms. Methods: Ado lescents attending a university-based adolescent medicine clinic compl eted a self-administered questionnaire. Subjects were asked to rate th e importance of six qualities (caring about each other, length of time of relationship, ability to talk about anything, ability to talk abou t sex and condoms, doing things together, and attraction to partner's looks) for each of four different types of sexual relationships (stead y, casual, friends, and ''one-night stands''). Subjects were also aske d to estimate the frequency with which adolescent's use condoms with e ach type of sexual partner. Results: Questionnaires were completed by 75 sexually experienced adolescents. The mean age of the sample was 16 .6 years, and 41.3% were male. All qualities, except attraction to par tner's looks, were rated more important for steady partners compared w ith the other partner types, and more important for sexual relationshi ps with casual partners and friends than for ''one-night stands'' (p < .001). Sexually experienced subjects believed that condoms are used l ess frequently with steady partners and more frequently with ''one-nig ht stands'' (p < .001). Conclusions: Interventions designed to increas e the consistency with which adolescents use condoms should take into account the different types of sexual relationships, each with distinc t expectancies about the consistency of condom use.