Correlates of intention to use condoms among Sub-Saharan African youth: the applicability of the theory of planned behaviour.
OBJECTIVE
To test the applicability of an extended version of the theory of planned behaviour for the study of condom use intentions among large samples of young people in South Africa and Tanzania.


METHODS
Baseline data of a randomized controlled trial of school-based HIV/AIDS prevention programmes were used. The setting comprised secondary schools in the regions of Cape Town, Polokwane and Dar es Salaam. Participants were 15,782 secondary school students. The main measures were scales for intentions, knowledge, risk perceptions, attitudes, perceived social norms and perceived self-efficacy regarding condom use.


RESULTS
Seven variables accounted for 77% of the variance in intentions to use condoms: attitudes (beta = 0.17), injunctive norms (beta = 0.27), self-efficacy (beta = 0.41), gender (lower condom use intentions among females), being a student at the Dar es Salaam site (lower scores than students in Cape Town and Polokwane), socioeconomic status (higher intentions with higher status), and access to condoms (higher intentions with higher access).


CONCLUSIONS
Our results are comparable to those of studies conducted in Europe and the USA. Social cognition models such as the theory of planned behaviour are applicable in understanding the correlates of condom use intentions in African contexts.
Schaalma
Herman
H
Department of Work & Social Psychology and Department of Health Education & Promotion, Maastricht University, Maastricht, the Netherlands. herman.schaalma@maastrichtuniversity.nl
Aarø
Leif Edvard
LE
Flisher
Alan J
AJ
Mathews
Catherine
C
Kaaya
Sylvia
S
Onya
Hans
H
Ragnarson
Anders
A
Klepp
Knut-Inge
KI
D000163:Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000517:prevention & control; D000293:Adolescent; D000294:Adolescent Behavior; D017280:Condoms; D005260:Female; D015658:HIV Infections / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000517:prevention & control*; D007722:Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D012574:Schools; D012736:Sex Education; D012725:Sexual Behavior; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors; D013019:South Africa / Q000453:epidemiology; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D013636:Tanzania / Q000453:epidemiology