Exploring young people's difficulties in talking about contraception: how can we encourage more discussion between partners?

Interviews mere conducted with 56 young men and women aged 16-19 within the Southampton Community Health NHS Trust to explore difficulties in talking about contraception. Concern about a partner's hostile or negative reaction to any discussion about contraception was central to explaining why some p eople found it so difficult to initiate such discussions. Admitting the int ention to have intercourse, together with a perceived association between c ondom use and disease prevention, were the main concerns. There was some in dication of gender differences in these findings. Furthermore, this negativ e reaction is perceived to be exacerbated according to the partner's reputa tion, the potential for harming one's own reputation and whether there is a desire for a longer-term relationship with this partner. The most importan t outcome of the interviews was that these concerns about a partner's negat ive reaction were largely unjustified, with the vast majority of participan ts showing only positive responses to scenarios of future partners initiati ng discussions with them about contraception. In addition to the need to im prove communication skills, the data suggest that greater awareness about t he positive reactions towards such discussions should be encouraged.