Retrospective assessment of the association between drinking and condom use.
OBJECTIVE
Retrospective reports of the association between drinking and high-risk sexual behavior can be biased by implicit theories of the effects of drinking or may represent post hoc justifications instead of accurate reports of behavior. Using data from a daily diary study, we compared daily reports of condom use when drinking and not drinking with the same participants' reports of these behaviors from a retrospective questionnaire administered after diary collection was complete.


METHODS
Participants included adolescents (n=145), adult sexually transmitted disease clinic clients (n=167), college students (n=145), and men who have sex with men (n=147). All participants reported their alcohol consumption and sexual activity daily for 8 weeks and then completed a retrospective questionnaire about their behavior over the diary period.


RESULTS
Participants' retrospective judgments about whether they used condoms more or less when drinking were not significantly related to their behavior as reported in the diary. Fewer than two thirds of the participants were accurate in their recollection of the association of condom use and drinking. Teenagers and men who have sex with men were more likely to retrospectively overestimate the negative effect of alcohol on condom use.


CONCLUSIONS
Retrospective questions about the association between drinking and condom use were consistent with actual behavior only among people who consistently either never or always used condoms. These individuals correctly reported that drinking had no effect on their condom use. For people whose condom use varies, questions about associations between drinking and sex may be difficult to answer, owing to their conditional nature, and may lead to error.
Leigh
Barbara C
BC
Alcohol and Drug Abuse Institute, University of Washington, 1107 N.E. 45th Street, Suite 120, Seattle, Washington 98105, USA. leigh@u.washington.edu
Morrison
Diane M
DM
Hoppe
Marilyn J
MJ
Beadnell
Blair
B
Gillmore
Mary Rogers
MR
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000428:Alcohol Drinking / Q000009:adverse effects* / Q000523:psychology; D017280:Condoms / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D012309:Risk-Taking; D012650:Self Disclosure; D012725:Sexual Behavior / Q000523:psychology*; D012747:Sexual Partners; D012749:Sexually Transmitted Diseases / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000517:prevention & control; D013334:Students / Q000523:psychology
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