Explaining the condom use of heterosexual men in a high-income country: adding somatic culture to the theory of planned behaviour

The Impact of Educational Intervention Based on Theory of Planned Behavior for Promoting Physical Activity Among Middle-Aged Women Referring to Karaj (Iran) Health Centers

BACKGROUND

Physical activity is the most critical determinant of physical health which reduces the health risks during life. This designed study aims to evaluate the effect of educational intervention based on the theory of planned behavior on promoting physical activity among middle-aged women attending the health centers in Karaj city during 2017-2018.

METHODS

This research was a quasi-experimental controlled trial, and the study incorporated 140 Middle-Aged Women Referring to Karaj Health Centers assigned randomly to a control and intervention group (70 each group). Participants enrolling in the survey were asked to complete the International Physical Activity Questionnaire and also the theory of planned behavior measures at the baseline and the end of the study. The SPSS software were used, to analyze the data. The study applied Nonparametric Wilcoxon and Mann-Whitney tests and ANCOVA to interpret the results.

RESULTS

The results revealed participants' age range between 30 to 50 years with the mean and standard deviation scores 40.07 (8.750) in training and 45.81 (8.513) at the control group. The intervention improved the theory of planned behavior measures and the physical activities of participants. The results showed a significant difference in the attitude score, the perceived behavioral control score, and the level of subjective norms between two training and non-training groups (P < 0.001). The followed-up physical activity score also showed an improvement in the IPAQ score of participants in the training group (p < 0.001).

CONCLUSIONS

The results of this specific study support the effectiveness of the theory of planned behavior for promoting the physical activity of women.

The intention to use HIV-pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) among men who have sex with men in Switzerland: testing an extended explanatory model drawing on the unified theory of acceptance and use of technology (UTAUT)

Aim

The aim of this study was to determine the intention to use pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) when available and to identify predictors of the intention to use PrEP among men who have sex with men (MSM) living in Switzerland. The theoretical model drew on the Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology and considered additional variables related specifically to PrEP, HIV protection and the resources of MSM.

Subject and methods

For data collection, we used an anonymous, standardized self-administered online questionnaire. In 2015, we gathered a convenience sample of 556 HIV-negative MSM living in Switzerland. We analyzed the data using descriptive and bivariate statistics and used structural equation modeling to test the hypothesized model.

Results

Predictors of respondents’ moderate intention to use PrEP were performance expectancy, effort expectancy, perceived social influence, concerns about using PrEP, attitudes toward condom use, negative experiences of condom use and age. These variables were predicted by HIV protection-related aspects and resources.

Conclusion

The findings provide insights into the complex dynamic underlying the intention to use PrEP.

An education intervention in an incarcerated population to reduce the occurrence of infectious skin diseases

A study conducted at a Midwest county confinement center focused on detainees' intention to wash their hands to prevent the spread of infectious skin diseases. Results of a qualitative interview and learning style inventory were used in conjunction with the theory of planned behavior to develop a Standard Precautions DVD to address hand washing, use of personal protective equipment while cleaning body fluids, and handling of laundry. A postintervention survey revealed significant knowledge-based learning among inmates. A regression model predicting behavioral intention (hand washing) with three predictor variables (attitude toward action, subjective norm, and perceived behavioral control) was developed. The highest correlation was found to be between inmates' subjective norms and their intent to wash their hands, which indicates that inmates' behavior after watching the DVD is most influenced by how others view them, with family members having the greatest influence on subjective norms.

Perceived behavioural control, subjective norms, attitudes and intention to use condom: a longitudinal cross-lagged design

Based on the Theory of Planned Behaviour (TPB), the purpose of this investigation was to examine the directionality of the association among condom use, intention, attitudes, subjective norms and perceived behavioural control. The present study investigated the nature of these relationships using a longitudinal cross-lagged design applied to data from a cohort of 958 randomly selected Italian adults. Using structural equation modelling, two cross-lagged panel analyses revealed reciprocal relationships between intention and attitudes and between intention and condom use. Contrary to expectations, baseline subjective norms and perceived behavioural control did not predict subsequent intention to use condom when controlled for the autoregressive effect of intention at T1 on the same variable at T2. Also, perceived behavioural control at T1 did not influence condom use at T2 after controlling for the effect of baseline intention. The possibility of reciprocity was also tested for all relations and significant results were found. The moderation effect of perceived behavioural control on the relationship between intention and condom use was not significant. The differences in age, gender and partnership status were taken into account in the analyses.

Individual and situational influences on men's responses to dating and social situations

This study employed multilevel modeling to evaluate individual and situational influences on men's responses to hypothetical dating and social situations. Three hundred and fifty college men completed measures assessing their propensity for sexual aggression and provided written responses to 10 written vignettes, each of which was followed by four statements provided by women that varied in their degree of effectiveness in decreasing victimization risk. Rape-supportive attitudes, poor heterosocial perception, earlier age of first sexual experience, and number of lifetime sexual partners were significant predictors of sexually aggressive responses. The presence of alcohol use, social isolation, relationship intimacy, and less effective responses from the woman involved also were significant predictors of sexually aggressive responses. Certain individual risk factors (i.e., poor heterosocial perception, rape-supportive attitudes) showed a stronger relationship to sexually aggressive responses in the context of situational risk factors (i.e., alcohol use, isolation). These findings indicate the importance of assessing both individual and situational influences on men's risk for engaging in sexually aggressive behavior.