title: Women's social communication about IUDs: a qualitative analysis.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Few U.S. women use an IUD, despite the method's efficacy and ease of use. While studies have found that misconceptions about IUDs are prevalent, few have examined the influence of women's social networks on perceptions of the method.
  
  
  METHODS
  Twenty-four interviews and three focus groups (comprising 14 participants) were conducted in 2013 with a diverse sample of women aged 15-45 recruited from family planning clinics and the community in San Francisco. Half of participants had used IUDs. Women were asked about their social communication concerning contraceptives, particularly IUDs, and about the content of the information they had received or given. Transcripts were analyzed using a modified grounded theory approach to identify themes of interest.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Women reported that communication with female friends and family members was a valued means of obtaining information about contraceptives, and that negative information (which often was incorrect) was more prevalent and memorable than positive information in such communication. Women heard about negative experiences with IUDs from social contacts and television commercials; clinicians were a major source of positive information. Women who had never used IUDs expressed interest in learning about potential side effects and how IUDs feel, while users reported emphasizing to friends and family the method's efficacy and ease of use.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Misinformation and negative information about IUDs are prevalent in social communication, and the information transmitted through social networks differs from the information never-users wish to receive. Findings support the creation of peer-led interventions to encourage IUD users to share positive personal experiences and evidence-based information.
authors.affiliation: Department of Family and Community Medicine, Gynecology and Reproductive Sciences, and Center for Reproductive Health Research, University of California, San Francisco (UCSF). andersonn@fcm.ucsf.edu.
authors.forename: Nora
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Anderson
authors.forename: Jody
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Steinauer
authors.forename: Thomas
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Valente
authors.forename: Jenna
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Koblentz
authors.forename: Christine
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Dehlendorf
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D005190:Family; D005260:Female; D017144:Focus Groups; D033062:Friends; D007722:Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice; D006801:Humans; D057226:Information Seeking Behavior; D007407:Interviews as Topic; D007434:Intrauterine Devices / Q000009:adverse effects; D008875:Middle Aged; D010465:Perception; D036301:Qualitative Research; D060756:Social Networking; D055815:Young Adult