High school students' attitudes, practices and knowledge of contraception in Jozini, KwaZulu-Natal

This study assessed the knowledge, attitudes and practices of contraception and sexual awareness amongst high school pupils in rural KwaZulu-Natal. Two hundred males and 200 females from five high schools in the Jozini district completed confidential, self-administered questionnaires in isiZulu. Alm...

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Main Authors: T.E. Oni, E.A.M. Prinsloo, J.D. Nortje, G. Joubert
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: AOSIS 2005-08-01
Series:South African Family Practice
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Online Access:https://safpj.co.za/index.php/safpj/article/view/255
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author T.E. Oni
E.A.M. Prinsloo
J.D. Nortje
G. Joubert
author_facet T.E. Oni
E.A.M. Prinsloo
J.D. Nortje
G. Joubert
author_sort T.E. Oni
collection DOAJ
description This study assessed the knowledge, attitudes and practices of contraception and sexual awareness amongst high school pupils in rural KwaZulu-Natal. Two hundred males and 200 females from five high schools in the Jozini district completed confidential, self-administered questionnaires in isiZulu. Almost two-thirds (61%) of the males and only 34.5% of the females indicated that they had girlfriends or boyfriends. Many more males (61.6%) than females (27.8%) indicated that they had engaged in sexual intercourse. The average age of first sexual intercourse was 15.4 years for the males and 16.4 years for the females. The most common contraceptive used among the males was a condom (81.4%) and among females it was the injection (65.4%). There was a high rate of unprotected sexual activity among the respondents, with 75.2% of the males and 61.5% of the females indicating that they had had sex without contraception. Most respondents received contraceptive information from the media. The preferred source of information was a doctor (45% male, 36.5% female). Only 29.1% of the males and 26.4% of the females indicated that their parents had discussed contraception with them. The high level of sexual activity and low contraceptive use put these adolescents at risk of pregnancy and STD infections. This study indicates that adolescents want to receive information on sexuality and contraception from their doctors.
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spelling doaj-art-89dcc08ec9714bb1963ba1ab9bd090122025-08-20T03:44:02ZengAOSISSouth African Family Practice2078-61902078-62042005-08-0147610.1080/20786204.2005.10873247254High school students' attitudes, practices and knowledge of contraception in Jozini, KwaZulu-NatalT.E. Oni0E.A.M. Prinsloo1J.D. Nortje2G. Joubert3Department of Family Medicine, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of the Free StateDepartment of Family Medicine, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of the Free StateDepartment of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of the Free StateDepartment of Biostatics, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of the Free StateThis study assessed the knowledge, attitudes and practices of contraception and sexual awareness amongst high school pupils in rural KwaZulu-Natal. Two hundred males and 200 females from five high schools in the Jozini district completed confidential, self-administered questionnaires in isiZulu. Almost two-thirds (61%) of the males and only 34.5% of the females indicated that they had girlfriends or boyfriends. Many more males (61.6%) than females (27.8%) indicated that they had engaged in sexual intercourse. The average age of first sexual intercourse was 15.4 years for the males and 16.4 years for the females. The most common contraceptive used among the males was a condom (81.4%) and among females it was the injection (65.4%). There was a high rate of unprotected sexual activity among the respondents, with 75.2% of the males and 61.5% of the females indicating that they had had sex without contraception. Most respondents received contraceptive information from the media. The preferred source of information was a doctor (45% male, 36.5% female). Only 29.1% of the males and 26.4% of the females indicated that their parents had discussed contraception with them. The high level of sexual activity and low contraceptive use put these adolescents at risk of pregnancy and STD infections. This study indicates that adolescents want to receive information on sexuality and contraception from their doctors.https://safpj.co.za/index.php/safpj/article/view/255contraceptionhigh school pupilssurveykwazulu-natalsexuality
spellingShingle T.E. Oni
E.A.M. Prinsloo
J.D. Nortje
G. Joubert
High school students' attitudes, practices and knowledge of contraception in Jozini, KwaZulu-Natal
South African Family Practice
contraception
high school pupils
survey
kwazulu-natal
sexuality
title High school students' attitudes, practices and knowledge of contraception in Jozini, KwaZulu-Natal
title_full High school students' attitudes, practices and knowledge of contraception in Jozini, KwaZulu-Natal
title_fullStr High school students' attitudes, practices and knowledge of contraception in Jozini, KwaZulu-Natal
title_full_unstemmed High school students' attitudes, practices and knowledge of contraception in Jozini, KwaZulu-Natal
title_short High school students' attitudes, practices and knowledge of contraception in Jozini, KwaZulu-Natal
title_sort high school students attitudes practices and knowledge of contraception in jozini kwazulu natal
topic contraception
high school pupils
survey
kwazulu-natal
sexuality
url https://safpj.co.za/index.php/safpj/article/view/255
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