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Personal Control, Self-Efficacy in Sexual Negotiation, and Contraceptive Risk among Adolescents: The Role of Gender

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Abstract

Adolescents’ sexual decision making is shaped by normative ideas about “appropriate” sexual roles for women and men; consequently, the motivation and ability to engage in safer sex may be different for adolescent girls and boys. The aim of this study was to explore how social–psychological resources influence the behavior of girls and boys within the highly gendered and inequitable domain of sexual relationships. I used data from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health (Add Health) to examine whether personal control and self-efficacy in sexual negotiation are associated with contraceptive risk (engaging in sexual intercourse or not using condoms) among adolescents and whether these associations differ for adolescent boys and girls. Results indicate that personal control and self-efficacy in sexual negotiation are significantly associated with safer sex behavior, and are often more important for girls than for boys in predicting contraceptive risk.

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Acknowledgments

The author would like to thank Chandra Muller and Debra Umberson for their comments on previous drafts of this article. The author would also like to thank the members of the Adolescent Health and Academic Achievement project for their comments and suggestions. The author accepts full responsibility for any shortcomings of this research.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Sociology, Population Research Center, The University of Texas, 1 University Station G1800, Austin, TX, 78712-0544, USA

    Jennifer Pearson

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  1. Jennifer Pearson
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Correspondence to Jennifer Pearson.

Additional information

This research was funded by grants from the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development under grant R01 HD40428-02 to the Population Research Center, University of Texas at Austin, Chandra Muller (PI), and from the National Science Foundation under grant REC-0126167 to the Population Research Center, University of Texas at Austin, Chandra Muller (PI). This research is based on data from the Add Health project, a program project designed by J. Richard Udry (PI) and Peter Bearman, and funded by grant P01-HD31921 from the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development to the Carolina Population Center, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Persons interested in obtaining data files from Add Health should contact Add Health, Carolina Population Center, 123 W. Franklin Street, Chapel Hill, NC 27516-2524 (addhealth@unc.edu). Opinions reflect those of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of the granting agencies.

Appendix

Appendix

Descriptive Statistics for the Full Add Health Sample and Analytical Samples (Unweighted)

 

Mean or Proportion (Standard Deviation)

Full Add Health sample

Sexual intercourse sample

Condom use sample

Sex/gender

   

Boys

.495

.488

.500

Girls

.505

.512

.500

Racial/ethnic identity

   

Non-Latino/ a White

.504

.506

.481

Non-Latino/ a Black

.225

.201

.259

Latino/a

.170

.187

.184

Asian

.071

.079

.047

Other

.030

.027

.030

Age

16.165 (1.723)

16.679 (1.023)

16.870 (1.023)

Time between interviews

10.950 (1.757)

10.981 (1.693)

11.071 (1.661)

Socioeconomic status

   

Family income

45.926(44.403)

46.982 (49.128)

43.341 (34.709)

Parent’s education

2.835 (1.258)

2.840 (1.278)

2.711 (1.208)

N

20,745

8,589

3,572

  1. Source: National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health.

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Pearson, J. Personal Control, Self-Efficacy in Sexual Negotiation, and Contraceptive Risk among Adolescents: The Role of Gender. Sex Roles 54, 615–625 (2006). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11199-006-9028-9

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11199-006-9028-9

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