Master of Public Health Research Project: Unmarried Women in Ghana, Africa: Predictors of Condom Use- An Analysis of the 2008 Ghana Demographic and Health Survey/Questionnaire Database

摘要

Background: Many factors affect whether women will insist that their sexual partners use a condom. This research project will identify some of the predictors of condom use among unmarried women in Ghana, Africa. Methods: This research project evaluated data from the 2008 DHS of women in Ghana, Africa for predictors of condom use among unmarried women. A total of 4,916 women completed the surveys. Of these, 1,966 women were unmarried. The research project employed multiple logistic regression analysis to determine condom use predictors at the time of the last sexual encounter for these 1,966 unmarried women. Results: Women with a secondary education or beyond were 3.2 (95% CI=2-5.2) times more likely to have insisted on the use of a condom than women with a primary education or less. Women ages 15-24 were 5.3 (95% CI=2.5-11.3) times more likely to have insisted on the use of a condom than women ages 35-49. Women ages 25-34 were not significantly different than the women ages 35-49. Women living in an urban area were 1.8 (95% CI=1.3-2.5) times more likely to have insisted on the use of a condom than women living in a rural area. Women with a higher level of literacy (could read a full sentence) were 3.6 (95% CI=2.5-5.1) times more likely to have insisted on the use of a condom than women with a lower level of literacy (were unable to read a full sentence). And in concert, women who read a newspaper or a magazine once a week or more were 2.4 (95% CI=1.6-3.5) times more likely to have insisted on the use of a condom than women who read a news paper or a magazine less than once a week. Similarly, women who watched television once a week or more were 2.9 (95%CI= 1.9-4.3) times more likely to have insisted on the use of a condom than women who watched less than once a week. Women who were determined to have “excellent” knowledge about HIV were 5.8 (95% CI=1.5-22.3) times more likely to have insisted on the use of a condom than women who were determined to have “fair or poor” knowledge. The results for women with a “good” knowledge were not significantly different than for those with “fair or poor” knowledge. Women who were determined, through a series of questions about wife beating, to have a low tolerance for abuse towards women (“strong” attitude about domestic violence/women’s rights) were 1.8 (95% CI=1.2-2.7) times more likely to have insisted on the use of a condom than women who were determined to have a high tolerance for abuse towards women (“poor” attitude about domestic violence/women’s rights). Results for women with a “fair” attitude were not significantly different from those with a “poor” attitude. Total life time sexual partners, frequency of listening to the radio, and interestingly, access to condoms did not significantly affect condom use. After multivariate adjustment, the significant predictors of condom use at the time of last sexual encounter were age, literacy, and amount of television watched. The results were: women age 15-24 (compared to women ages 35-49), women who could read a full sentence, and women who watched television once a week or more were 3.7 (95% CI=1.7-8.1), 2.1 (95% CI=1.4-3.3), and 1.8 (95% CI=1.2-2.8) times more likely to have insisted on the use of a condom during their last sexual encounter, respectively. Conclusion: Education, age, locality, literacy, media exposure (through reading the news paper or a magazine and watching television), knowledge about HIV, and attitude about domestic were predictors of condom use by the sexual partner of unmarried Ghanaian women at the time of last sexual encounter. After multivariate adjustment, only age, literacy, and amount of television watched were significant predictors of condom use at the time of the last sexual encounter.