‘Female condoms give women greater control’: A qualitative assessment of the experiences of commercial sex workers in Swaziland

Mathenjwa, Thulile; Maharaj, Pranitha

doi:10.3109/13625187.2012.694147

Cited by 23 publications

(69 citation statements)

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“…As a result of these gendered power imbalances, one group of scholars has advocated for the replacement of the concept of safe sex (i.e., sexual activity that's protected from unintended pregnancy and/or STIs) with woman-controlled safe sex (Alexander, Coleman, Deatrick, & Jemmott, HIGGINS AND SMITH 2012). Along those lines, the call for women-controlled dual-prevention technologies, such as female condoms and microbicides, consistently highlights the notion that women need access to methods that they can use covertly, regardless of their male partners' knowledge or participation (Mathenjwa & Maharaj, 2012). Though woman-controlled safe sex is a powerful and necessary feminist concept, it may be less relevant to those situations in which women's heterosexual activity is consensual and, ideally, mutually pleasurable.…”

Section: Part 1: Building a Conceptual Model Of Sexual Acceptability mentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Even though contraceptives are used within sexual and relational interactions, contraceptive acceptability research largely has been remiss in assessing partnership factors. In some ways, this omission has been purposeful: Research on womencontrolled technologies has deliberately tried to provide women with contraceptives they could use independently of their partners' knowledge or participation (Mathenjwa & Maharaj, 2012;Naidu, 2013). In other ways, this omission has come with a cost, particularly in terms of fully understanding the sexual aspects of contraceptives.…”

Section: Relationship Factors: Dyadic Influences and Partner Preferencesmentioning

confidence: 99%

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The Sexual Acceptability of Contraception: Reviewing the Literature and Building a New Concept

Higgins

Smith

2016

The Journal of Sex Research

172

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How contraceptives affect women’s sexual well-being is critically understudied. Fortunately, a growing literature focuses on sexual aspects of contraception, especially hormonal contraception’s associations with libido. However, a more holistic approach to contraceptive sexual acceptability is needed to capture the full range of women’s sexual experiences. We conducted a narrative literature review of this topic, working with an original sample of 3,001 citations published from 2005 to 2015. In Part 1, we draw from a subset of this literature (264 citations) to build a new conceptual model of sexual acceptability. Aspects include macro factors (gender, social inequality, culture, and structure), relationship factors (dyadic influences and partner preferences), and individual factors (sexual functioning, sexual preferences, such as dis/inhibition, spontaneity, pleasure, the sexual aspects of side effects, such as bleeding, mood changes, sexual identity and sexual minority status, and pregnancy intentions). In Part 2, we review the empirical literature on the sexual acceptability of individual methods (103 citations), applying the model as much as possible. Results suggest contraceptives can affect women’s sexuality in a wide variety of positive and negative ways that extend beyond sexual functioning alone. More attention to sexual acceptability could promote both women’s sexual well-being and more widespread, user-friendly contraceptive practices.

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Section: Part 1: Building a Conceptual Model Of Sexual Acceptability mentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Relationship Factors: Dyadic Influences and Partner Preferencesmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Sexual Acceptability of Contraception: Reviewing the Literature and Building a New Concept

Higgins

Smith

2016

The Journal of Sex Research

172

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“…In the majority of studies on female condoms, only women have been interviewed (see Beksinska, Smit, Joanis, & Hart, 2012; Feldblum et al, 2000; Joanis et al, 2011; Kulcyzki, Kim, Duerr, Jamieson, & Macaluso, 2004; Mathenjwa & Maharaj, 2012; Napierala, Kang, Chipato, Padian, & van der Straten, 2008; Sly, Quadagno, Harrison, & Eberstein, 1997; Weeks, Coman, Hilario, Li, & Abbot, 2013; Zachariah et al, 2003). As a result, much of what is known about men’s perceptions and experiences of the device is based solely on women’s accounts of their experiences with male partners.…”

Section: Men and Female Condomsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“It's a Different Condom, Let's See How It Works”: Young Men's Reactions to and Experiences of Female Condom Use During an Intervention Trial in South Africa

Masvawure

Mantell

Mabude

et al. 2013

The Journal of Sex Research

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Although male partner cooperation is often essential for successful use of the female condom, only a few studies have directly assessed men’s experiences of using the device. We examined barriers to and facilitators of female condom use via qualitative in-depth interviews with 38 young men (18 to 28 years) in South Africa whose partners, all university students, were enrolled in a female condom intervention trial. In all, 21 men used the female condom; the remaining 17 did not attempt use. The main facilitators to female condom use were convenience of use for men, curiosity to see how female condoms compared to male condoms, enhanced sexual sensation, and perceptions of better safety and comfort of the device compared to male condoms. The main barriers were men’s limited familiarity with the device, insertion difficulties, and men’s concerns about loss of control over sexual encounters. We recommend that human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) prevention and condom promotion programs around the world target men directly for education on female condoms and that they also work with couples jointly around issues of safer-sex communication and negotiation.

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“…The 2009 Modes of Transmission Study reports that heterosexual transmission accounts for the majority of HIV infections in Swaziland and sex work is a minor driver of the epidemic; however, it also acknowledges that little information is known about this hidden population [36]. A literature review revealed only two peer-reviewed studies conducted on sex workers in Swaziland [37], [38]. Although sex work is not criminalized in Swaziland, activities related to sex work, such as the solicitation and procurement of sex in public, are illegal [39], which makes conducting research among this population difficult yet essential to understanding factors shaping their HIV-related risk.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Social Cohesion, Social Participation, and HIV Related Risk among Female Sex Workers in Swaziland

et al. 2014

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Social capital is important to disadvantaged groups, such as sex workers, as a means of facilitating internal group-related mutual aid and support as well as access to broader social and material resources. Studies among sex workers have linked higher social capital with protective HIV-related behaviors; however, few studies have examined social capital among sex workers in sub-Saharan Africa. This cross-sectional study examined relationships between two key social capital constructs, social cohesion among sex workers and social participation of sex workers in the larger community, and HIV-related risk in Swaziland using respondent-driven sampling. Relationships between social cohesion, social participation, and HIV-related risk factors were assessed using logistic regression. HIV prevalence among the sample was 70.4% (223/317). Social cohesion was associated with consistent condom use in the past week (adjusted odds ratio [AOR] = 2.25, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.30–3.90) and was associated with fewer reports of social discrimination, including denial of police protection. Social participation was associated with HIV testing (AOR = 2.39, 95% CI: 1.36–4.03) and using condoms with non-paying partners (AOR = 1.99, 95% CI: 1.13–3.51), and was inversely associated with reported verbal or physical harassment as a result of selling sex (AOR = 0.55, 95% CI: 0.33–0.91). Both social capital constructs were significantly associated with collective action, which involved participating in meetings to promote sex worker rights or attending HIV-related meetings/ talks with other sex workers. Social- and structural-level interventions focused on building social cohesion and social participation among sex workers could provide significant protection from HIV infection for female sex workers in Swaziland.

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‘Female condoms give women greater control’: A qualitative assessment of the experiences of commercial sex workers in Swaziland

Abstract: Although female condom use involves negotiation with clients, the fact that it offers sex workers an independent method of protection gives them more power and also, increases their ability to control their sexual and reproductive health.

Cited by 23 publications

References 24 publications

The Sexual Acceptability of Contraception: Reviewing the Literature and Building a New Concept

The Sexual Acceptability of Contraception: Reviewing the Literature and Building a New Concept

“It's a Different Condom, Let's See How It Works”: Young Men's Reactions to and Experiences of Female Condom Use During an Intervention Trial in South Africa

Social Cohesion, Social Participation, and HIV Related Risk among Female Sex Workers in Swaziland

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