title: Sense of Mission and Sexual Health Outcomes Among Young Adult Women.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To examine the association between self-reported sense of mission and sexual health behaviors in a geographically diverse cohort of U.S. young adult females in the Growing Up Today Study (GUTS).
  
  
  METHODS
  We conducted a cross-sectional analysis of the 2007 wave of GUTS data from self-reported online or mailed surveys. Outcomes were early sex initiation and history of sexually transmitted infection (STI), which were analyzed as a binary outcome using logit link, and number of sex partners, which was analyzed as a continuous outcome. Models for number of sex partners and history of STIs were adjusted for age.
  
  
  METHODS
  There were 5,624 young women aged 20 to 25 years who participate in GUTS and who answered the question on "sense of mission."
  
  
  METHODS
  Age at sexual initiation, history of STIs, and number of lifetime partners.
  
  
  RESULTS
  When asked whether they had a sense of mission in their life, 28.1% of women strongly agreed, 54.9% agreed, and 17% disagreed. Women with a low sense of mission had higher odds of reporting a history of STI (odds ratio 1.35, 95% confidence interval 1.08 to 1.70), and more lifetime sexual partners (β = .83, P < .001).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Having a high sense of mission is associated with lower sexual risk in young women. Interventions to increase sense of mission among young women may improve sexual health outcomes.
authors.affiliation: Division of Adolescent Medicine, Department of Medicine, Boston Children's Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA. Electronic address: nancy.dodson@childrens.harvard.edu.
authors.forename: Nancy A
authors.initials: NA
authors.lastname: Dodson
authors.affiliation: Division of Adolescent Medicine, Department of Medicine, Boston Children's Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA; Division of Health Promotion and Behavioral Science, San Diego State University Graduate School of Public Health, San Diego, CA, USA.
authors.forename: Heather L
authors.initials: HL
authors.lastname: Corliss
authors.affiliation: Clinical Research Center, Boston Children's Hospital, Boston, MA, USA.
authors.forename: Vishnudas
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Sarda
authors.affiliation: Division of Adolescent Medicine, Department of Medicine, Boston Children's Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA.
authors.forename: S Jean
authors.initials: SJ
authors.lastname: Emans
authors.affiliation: Division of Adolescent Medicine, Department of Medicine, Boston Children's Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA; Channing Division of Network Medicine, Department of Medicine, Brigham and Women's Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA; Department of Epidemiology, Harvard School of Public Health, Boston, MA, USA.
authors.forename: Alison E
authors.initials: AE
authors.lastname: Field
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000367:Age Factors; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005260:Female; D006040:Goals; D006801:Humans; D016017:Odds Ratio; D012067:Religion; D060728:Reproductive Health; D012306:Risk; D012309:Risk-Taking; D012725:Sexual Behavior / Q000523:psychology* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D012747:Sexual Partners / Q000523:psychology*; D012749:Sexually Transmitted Diseases / Q000523:psychology*; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D055815:Young Adult
keywords: Sense of mission; Sexual health; Young adults