Associations Between Recent Contraceptive Use and First Sex Behaviors of Scottish Adolescents: A Brief Report

Malachi Willis; Judith Mabelis; Dorothy Currie; Judith Brown; Joanna Inchley

doi:10.1080/19317611.2024.2327360

Associations Between Recent Contraceptive Use and First Sex Behaviors of Scottish Adolescents: A Brief Report

Int J Sex Health. 2024 Mar 31;36(2):199-204. doi: 10.1080/19317611.2024.2327360. eCollection 2024.

Authors

Malachi Willis¹, Judith Mabelis¹, Dorothy Currie², Judith Brown¹, Joanna Inchley¹

Affiliations

¹ MRC/CSO Social and Public Health Sciences Unit, School of Health and Wellbeing, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, UK.
² School of Medicine, University of St Andrews, St Andrews, UK.

Abstract

Objectives: We examined associations between recent contraceptive use and first-sex behaviors (early initiation, substance use, contraceptive use) among adolescents in Scotland.

Methods: We used data from the Health Behavior in School-aged Children study.

Results: Controlling for early initiation and substance use, girls and boys who used contraceptives at first sex were 7.5 and 12.3 times more likely to use contraceptives at most recent sexual intercourse than adolescents who did not (p < .001). We also present preliminary evidence on contraceptive use of Scottish adolescents in 2022.

Conclusions: Experiences during adolescents' first sex may have lasting implications for later sexual behavior.

Keywords: HBSC; contraceptive use; school survey; sexual health.

Grants and funding

Funding for the Scottish HBSC Survey was provided by Public Health Scotland (previously, NHS Health Scotland). This work also was supported by the Medical Research Council (MC_UU_00022/1) and the Chief Scientist Office of the Scottish Government Health and Social Care Directorate (SPHSU16). The opinions expressed in this paper are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect those of Public Health Scotland as commissioners of the work or the University Court of the University of Glasgow as providers of the work.