title: Relative efficacy of a pregnancy, sexually transmitted infection, or human immunodeficiency virus prevention-focused intervention on changing sexual risk behavior among young adults.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Despite findings suggesting that young adults are more concerned about experiencing an unplanned pregnancy or contracting a sexually transmitted infection (STI) than becoming human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infected, no empirical work has investigated whether the specific focus of an intervention may be more or less efficacious at changing sexual behavior.
  
  
  METHODS
  Participants were 198 college students randomized to 1 of 4 conditions: pregnancy intervention, STI intervention, HIV intervention, or a control condition during 2008-2009.
  
  
  METHODS
  The authors compared the efficacy of 3 theory-based, sexual risk-reduction interventions that were exactly the same except for an exclusive focus on preventing pregnancy, STI, or HIV. Condom use and risky sexual behavior were assessed at baseline and 4-week and 8-week follow-up.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Participants exposed to the pregnancy or STI interventions reported greater condom use and less risky sexual behavior than those exposed to the HIV intervention.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The focus of sexual risk-reduction interventions may lead to differential behavior change among young adults.
authors.affiliation: Department of Health Behavior, School of Public Health, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, Alabama 35293, USA. wenorton@uab.edu
authors.forename: Wynne E
authors.initials: WE
authors.lastname: Norton
authors.forename: Jeffrey D
authors.initials: JD
authors.lastname: Fisher
authors.forename: K Rivet
authors.initials: KR
authors.lastname: Amico
authors.forename: John F
authors.initials: JF
authors.lastname: Dovidio
authors.forename: Blair T
authors.initials: BT
authors.lastname: Johnson
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000704:Analysis of Variance; D017280:Condoms / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D003237:Connecticut; D003268:Contraception Behavior / Q000523:psychology / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D005260:Female; D015658:HIV Infections / Q000517:prevention & control / Q000523:psychology; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D011247:Pregnancy; D049168:Pregnancy, Unplanned / Q000523:psychology; D040242:Risk Reduction Behavior; D021841:Safe Sex / Q000523:psychology / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D012725:Sexual Behavior / Q000523:psychology / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D012749:Sexually Transmitted Diseases / Q000517:prevention & control* / Q000523:psychology; D047568:Unsafe Sex / Q000523:psychology / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D055815:Young Adult