Kate Welti

Relationship Characteristics and Contraceptive Use Among Young Adults

CONTEXT Young adults have high rates of unintended childbearing and STDs, yet little research has examined the role of relationship characteristics in their contraceptive use. METHODS Data collected from the 2002-2005 rounds of the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth yielded a sample of 4,014 dating relationships among sexually active 18-26-year-olds. Bivariate analysis and multivariate logistic and multinomial logistic regressions assessed associations between relationship characteristics and contraceptive use at last sex. RESULTS In three-quarters of the relationships, respondents had used some method at last intercourse; respondents in 26% of the relationships had used a condom only, in 26% a hormonal method only and in 23% dual methods. Compared with respondents in relationships in which first sex occurred within two months of starting to date, those who first had sex before dating were more likely to have used any method at last sex (odds ratio, 1.4), particularly condoms or dual methods (relative risk ratio, 1.5 for each). The relative risk of using a hormonal method only, rather than no method or condoms only, increased with relationship duration (1.01) and level of intimacy (1.1-1.2). Discussing marriage or cohabitation was associated with reduced odds of having used any method (0.7) and a reduced relative risk of having used condoms alone or dual methods (0.6 for each). Increasing levels of partner conflict and asymmetry were also linked to reduced odds of any method use (0.97 and 0.90, respectively). CONCLUSIONS Prevention programs should address relationship context in contraceptive decision making, perhaps by combining relationship and sex education curricula to foster communication and negotiation skills.

Exploring Motivations to Adopt

This study used National Survey of Adoptive Parents (NSAP) data to explore adoptive parent motivations. Examination of adoption motivation is important as it relates to recruitment of adoptive families for children needing homes. Findings show that families using the three main types of adoption—foster care, private domestic, and international—have somewhat similar motivations for adopting. Infertile couples are found within each adoption type and are happy with their choice. While many families adopting more than one child choose the same adoption type for each adoption, many families do not, choosing to adopt their children through different means.