Beliefs about HSV and HPV and Sexual Behavior Among Incarcerated Adolescent Women

Abstract

Using the Commonsense Model (Skelton & Croyle, 1991), this study examines incarcerated adolescent females' beliefs about the human papillomavirus (HPV) and herpes simplex virus (HSV) infections and the relationship between their beliefs and safer sexual practices. Participants included 54 volunteers of various ethnicities, whose average age was 15.9 years. They completed a questionnaire focusing on their beliefs about HPV and HSV and frequency of safer sexual behaviors. Beliefs about the two infections were inaccurate, especially with regard to control and curability. Although use of safer sexual practices was high for some behaviors, lower scores on other behaviors suggested an inconsistent use of these practices. Accuracy of beliefs regarding HPV was significantly related to safer sexual practices, however not for HSV. There were no significant relationships between fear of

Young women's representations of sexually transmitted diseases (RoSTD): A psychometric study

“…In previous research, STD illness representations (HPV, HSV, and HIV) were consistent with the dimensions of the CSM (Keller, 1993; Sacajiu et al, 2007; von Sadovszky et al, 2000). However, these studies were either qualitative or used representational instruments that had not been subject to statistical analyses to determine the structure of STD representations.…”

“…The CSM posits that individuals have beliefs about illnesses, called illness representations, and these beliefs, regardless of whether or not they are medically accurate, guide subsequent health behaviors. For example, there is evidence that accurate HPV illness representations are associated with safer sex practices (von Sadovszky, Carlson‐Dakes, & Keller, 2000). According to the CSM, illness representations have five dimensions: cause, identity, timeline, consequences, and cure/control.…”

“…Consequences may be an essential dimension on which to target interventions to improve STD prevention and management. Third, the IPQ as well as other measures that have been used to measure STD representations (Keller, 1993; von Sadovszky et al, 2000) have only been used to assess beliefs about HIV, HPV, and HSV. Whether these measures are also suitable for assessing beliefs about other STDs is not known.…”

Providers' Experiences with Young People's Cognitive Representations and Emotions Related to the Prevention and Treatment of Sexually Transmitted Infections

“…PHNs and other care providers should consider how misconceptions may negatively influence behavior and perpetuate STIs. This is critical as previous research has identified that the accuracy of STI representations is associated with safer sexual behavior (von Sadovszky, Carlson‐Dakes, & Keller, 2000). To illustrate this point, recall that all three focus groups mentioned that some young people believe that STIs cannot be transmitted via oral sex.…”

“…This study did not specifically explore variation in provider perceptions by type of STI. Given that there is evidence that representations can vary by infection type (von Sadovszky et al, 2000), future investigations are necessary to comprehensively explore provider perceptions of patients' representations about specific types of STI.…”