Amsterdam 2015
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| Abstract #2262 - Women and Sex | ||||
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Session: 56.3: Women and Sex (Oral poster discussion) on Friday @ 12.30-13.30 in Poster room 2 Chaired by Brian Kelly, Wendee Wechsberg Authors: Presenting Author: Ms. Diane Francis - UNC Chapel Hill, United States |
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| Additional Authors: | ||||
| Aim: Access to condoms is a major issue on some college campuses in the United States, including Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs). When condoms are available, environmental and psychosocial barriers (e.g. embarrassment and stigma) can get in the way of acquiringcondoms. Such barriers reduce a person’s ability to obtain condoms and increases risk of adverse sexual health outcomes, especially for young women. The purpose of this presentation is to discuss the development of messages for a social marketing “point-of-sale” poster campaign (via dispensers with free condoms) to increase condom access and acquisition among 18-24-year-old African American female students on an HBCU campus in the southeastern United States. | ||||
| Method / Issue: We conducted six focus groups (n=40) in two phases as part of the formative research stage of a condom distribution program (CDP). The primary aim of phase one (four focus groups n=34) was to understand factors influencing condom access and acquisition in order to develop messages for the campaign. In phase two (two focus groups n=6), students were shown two draft message concepts and posters. They answered open-ended questions about attention-getting, comprehension and credibility, cognitive and emotional reactions, personal relevance, perceived effectiveness, and overall appeal for other HBCU students. All participants signed informed consent and received $15 gift cards. | ||||
| Results / Comments: Students acknowledged that a wide range of condoms is readily available and accessible on campus. Students, however, said that young women were indeed embarrassed to be seen getting condoms on campus. Other psychosocial barriers included negative perceptions of females who are seen obtaining condoms and social norms suggesting that males are responsible for acquiring condoms. Students were interested in the CDP and wanted to see messages that appealed to personal and shared responsibility, targeted and attacked society’s negative beliefs about women acquiring condoms, and incorporated positive attitudes. On the basis of the focus groups, two draft concepts were created. The first execution used emojis (popular cartoon-like characters and symbols) and a females’ hand holding a condom. The second execution presented scripted messages (e.g. “There is nothing like being well packaged.”) on a chalkboard background. In general, students preferred the concept with the script on the chalkboard, perceiving it as a message that would catch their attention and encourage them to take condoms, and something they would remember and share with their friends. Students further said they would feel comfortable obtaining condoms from the dispensers if the scripted messages were displayed. Students suggested ways of enhancing the scripts, changing the colors of the posters to be more appealing, and simplifying the call to action. | ||||
| Discussion: The formative work from this project suggested that African American female college students are interested in acquiring condoms on their campus and that this intervention could be useful to those who feel embarrassed about acquiring condoms. Evaluation of the project’s impact will be determined using a 3-month pre-post intervention. The information from this formative work can be useful to those developing combined social marketing and health product distribution interventions. | ||||
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