Reliability and validity of a self-efficacy instrument for protective sexual behaviors. J Am Coll Health 1998 Nov;47(3):113-21
Date
11/27/1998Pubmed ID
9830817DOI
10.1080/07448489809595631Scopus ID
2-s2.0-0031741273 (requires institutional sign-in at Scopus site) 45 CitationsAbstract
The authors investigated the psychometric properties of a 22-item scale that measured respondents' perceptions of their ability to refuse sexual intercourse, question potential sexual partners, and use condoms. Two hundred twenty-one male and female undergraduates completed an anonymous questionnaire that measured a wide range of constructs. The scale exhibited good internal consistency, and convergent validity was demonstrated for 5 sexual behavior items (number of sexual partners ever and in the past 3 months, condom use in past 3 months, at last intercourse, and in the future). The instrument appeared to be free of social desirability bias and was reliable and valid for assessing college students' self-efficacy for protective sexual behaviors. College healthcare professionals could administer the instrument to help students determine their levels of self-efficacy for engaging in self-protective behaviors and identify domains in which they may need to improve their skills to reduce their risks of acquiring a sexually transmitted disease or having or causing an unplanned pregnancy.
Author List
Cecil H, Pinkerton SDMESH terms used to index this publication - Major topics in bold
AdolescentAdult
Bias
Condoms
Discriminant Analysis
Female
Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice
Humans
Male
Middle Aged
Pregnancy
Psychometrics
Reproducibility of Results
Sexual Behavior
Sexually Transmitted Diseases
Social Desirability
Students
Surveys and Questionnaires
