YOUNG UNMARRIED MEN AND WOMEN DISCUSS MENS ROLE IN CONTRACEPTIVE PRACTICE

Focus groups with 76 sexually experienced young men and women living i n the Denver area in 1993 explored the reasons unmarried men do or do not involve themselves in contraceptive practice. Motivation to use co ntraceptives is driven by a desire to prevent both pregnancy and sexua lly transmitted diseases (STDs), particularly AIDS. Despite dissatisfa ction with the condom, both men and women report high rates of condom use. The method used, however, is dependent on the type of relationshi p involved, with condoms used more frequently in casual sexual relatio nships than in long-term relationships. Communication between partners about contraception is least likely to occur in casual relationships and in the early stages of a new sexual relationship. Despite awarenes s of the risks of STDs and pregnancy, both men and women report that t hey occasionally use no method at all or rely on a method other than c ondoms with casual partners. Most men and women in long-term relations hips switch from condoms to other methods once they have had time to a ssess, often by unreliable means, their partner's risk status.