Michèle Ferrand

Changes in sexual behaviours: from secular trends to public health policies.

Objective:To explore the relative contribution of secular trends and public health policies to changes in sexual behaviour. Design:Three random probability surveys of the sexual behaviour of people aged 18–69 years were conducted in 1970, 1992 and 2006 in France. Methods:Data of the 2006 survey (n = 12 364) were compared with those from two surveys carried out in 1970 (n = 2625) and 1992 (n = 20 055). Results:Over the last decades, median age at first intercourse has decreased by 4 years for women (22.0 in the 1930s vs. 17.6 in the 2000s) and 1 year for men (18.1 vs. 17.2). Lifetime number of sexual partners increased for women (1.8 in 1970 vs. 4.4 in 2006), but not for men (11.8 vs. 11.6). At the same time, the proportion of respondents, especially women, who reported nonpenetrative sexual practices and considered sexual intercourse essential to well being was on the increase. These changes are mainly attributed to an increase in womens social status. A marked increase in condom use was observed following the first AIDS/HIV prevention campaigns in the 1980s. Conclusion:Public health interventions that are synergistic with trends in social norms are likely to be more effective than those that run counter to them. In France, sexual health and HIV prevention policies aimed at harm limitation appear to have chimed with secular trends. The evidence of greater diversification of sexual practices offers potential to increase the range of safer sex messages used in public health interventions.

Analysis of the underestimation of induced abortions in a survey of the general population in France

Introduction A pilot study has been conducted in France to estimate the extent of underreporting of induced abortion and the factors linked to underreporting. Methods A representative random sample of 300 women aged between 18 and 44 years of age who had been pregnant during the previous 2 years and 100 women who had not was selected from the telephone directory. Interviews were conducted by telephone. Results The annual incidence of induced abortion for the 18–44-year-old age group was 6.9 per 1000 (95% confidence interval 2.2–11.6), while the rate derived from national statistics was 15 per 1000. Five women who reported a therapeutic abortion in their lifetime had confused induced abortion and therapeutic abortion. There was no significant difference in the proportion of women reporting induced abortion in their lifetime between those answering with another adult present and those who were alone when answering (13.1% versus 11.1%, p = 0.8). There was also no significant difference according to the sex of the interviewer (10.0% for men versus 12.2% for women, p = 0.6). Conclusion The results suggest that the context in which the questions were asked does not affect the validity of the answers and that there is a problem in the comprehension of the terminology used. Extensive rewriting and reformulation of the questions is required to minimize the underreporting of induced abortion.

O aborto, uma condição para a emancipação feminina

Na Franca, o atraso com relacao a outros paises ocidentais sobre a liberalizacao do controle de nascimentos se explica pela existencia de um natalismo de Estado. A contracepcao foi autorizada somente em 1967, com muitas restricoes. Os eventos de maio de 68 e, sobretudo, a ascencao do feminismo conseguiram impor uma liberalizacao maior, que permitiu as mulheres, em 1975, o direito de solicitar um aborto nas primeiras dez semanas de gravidez. A autora, sociologa, participou ativamente do movimento de mulheres. Paralelamente, ela escolheu o aborto como tema de pesquisa. E sua trajetoria, por meio das diferentes etapas da liberacao, mas tambem os problemas sociologicos e politicos que ela pode identificar objeto deste artigo, assim como a apresentacao dos principais resultados de pesquisa.

Féminins/Masculins, sociologie du genre, Christine Guyonnet, Eric Neveu. A Colin (2004), (286 pages)

Apprendre la parution d’un ouvrage intitule Sociologie du genre dans la celebre Collection U d’Armand Colin ne peut que rejouir toutes celles et tous ceux qui œuvrent depuis plusieurs decennies, sous differentes denominations, a la reconnaissance de ce champ de recherche. La volonte qui preside a cette parution parait extremement bienvenue, comme l’indique la quatrieme de couverture. Les auteur-e-s partent du constat que les effets de la difference sexuelle, contrairement a ceux de l’âge ou d...