Risky reproductive health behavior and information access on adolescents: Mix-method analysis
Article Sidebar
Main Article Content
Abstract
Adolescence is a vital period of development marked by confusion, a range of emotions, and an understanding of adult behavior, the environment, enthusiasm, and an inclination to explore, particularly with drugs, alcohol, and sex. This study outlines adolescents' knowledge, attitude, access to information and risky behaviors related to reproductive health. This study employed a concurrent triangulation design, using mixed methodologies. The chi-square test was used to examine this form of quantitative study. The focus groups and in-depth interviews with teenagers in several agencies, along with the accompanying teachers and parents, provided qualitative information for this study. Adolescents had greater access to knowledge about reproductive health issues, but the majority were unable to make effective use of this information. Numerous risky habits, including drug use, also set off unsafe sexual behaviors. In contrast to their parents or professors, teenagers increasingly feel more at the ease of sharing stories with their friends. It is intended that parents and educators will act in a peer-like manner by imitating teenagers’ social cues. Quantitative analysis revealed relationships among information access, attitude, knowledge, and reproductive behavior. Teenagers typically have higher knowledge of their reproductive health. However, the majority of them struggle to put this knowledge into practice, and as a result, many engage in risky sexual behavior out of curiosity.
Downloads
Article Details
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.
References
Abiola, S. E., Gonzales, R., Blendon, R. J., and Benson, J. (2011). Survey in sub-Saharan Africa shows substantial support for government efforts to improve health services. Health Affairs, 30(8), 1478–1487.
Ajzen, I. (2011). The theory of planned behavior: Reactions and reflections. Psychology and Health, 26(9), 1113–1127.
Alimoradi, Z., Kariman, N., Ahmadi, F., Simbar, M., and Allen, K. A. (2019). Iranian adolescent girls’ perceptions of premarital sexual relationships: A qualitative study. The Qualitative Report, 24(11), 2903–2915.
Bearinger, L. H., Sieving, R. E., Ferguson, J., and Sharma, V. (2007). Global perspectives on the sexual and reproductive health of adolescents: Patterns, prevention, and potential. The Lancet, 369(9568), 1220–1231.
Blanc, A. K., Tsui, A. O., Croft, T. N., and Trevitt, J. L. (2009). Patterns and trends in adolescents’ contraceptive use and discontinuation in developing countries and comparisons with adult women. International Perspectives on Sexual and Reproductive Health, 35(2), 63–71.
Borzekowski, D. L. G., and Rickert, V. I. (2001). Adolescents, the internet, and health: Issues of access and content. Journal of Applied Developmental Psychology, 22(1), 49–59.
Brewster, G. S., Herbert, M. E., and Hoffman, J. R. (2000). Analgesia should not be given to patients with an acute abdomen because it obscures the diagnosis. Western Journal of Medicine, 172(3), 209–210.
Chandra-Mouli, V., McCarraher, D. R., Phillips, S. J., Williamson, N. E., and Hainsworth, G. (2014). Contraception for adolescents in low and middle income countries: Needs, barriers, and access. Reproductive Health, 11(1), 1–8.
Chen, X. K., Wen, S. W., Fleming, N., Demissie, K., Rhoads, G. G., and Walker, M. (2007). Teenage pregnancy and adverse birth outcomes: A large population based retrospective cohort study. International Journal of Epidemiology, 36(2), 368–373.
Cortez, R., Revuelta, K.-A., and Guirola, Y. (2015). Adolescent Sexual and Reproductive Health in El Salvador. Washington, DC: Health, Nutrition, and Population (HNP), The World Bank, pp. 78–86.
Creswell, J. W. (2018). Research Design: Qualitative, Quantitative, and Mixed Methods Approaches. 5th, California: Sage Publications, pp. 1–256.
Djannah, S. N., Sulistyawati, S., Sukesi, T. W., Mulasari, S. A., and Tentama, F. (2020). Audio-visual media to improve sexual-reproduction health knowledge among adolescent. International Journal of Evaluation and Research in Education, 9(1), 138–143.
Edejer, T. T. T. (2000). Disseminating health information in developing countries: The role of the internet. British Medical Journal, 321, 797.
Eysenbach, G., and Diepgen, T. L. (1998). Towards quality management of medical information on the internet: Evaluation, labelling, and filtering of information. British Medical Journal, 317(7171), 1496–1500.
Gould, M. S., Munfakh, J. L. H., Lubell, K., Kleinman, M., and Parker, S. (2002). Seeking help from the internet during adolescence. Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, 41(10), 1182–1189.
Gray, N. J., Klein, J. D., Noyce, P. R., Sesselberg, T. S., and Cantrill, J. A. (2005). Health information-seeking behaviour in adolescence: The place of the internet. Social Science and Medicine, 60(7), 1467–1478.
Hailstone, S., Wyndham, A., and Mitchell, E. (2005). Delivering smoking cessation information in the workplace using Quit Online. New South Wales Public Health Bulletin, 16(2), 18–22.
Janighorban, M., Boroumandfar, Z., Pourkazemi, R., and Mostafavi, F. (2022). Barriers to vulnerable adolescent girls’ access to sexual and reproductive health. BMC Public Health, 22, 2212.
Kavanaugh, M. L., and Anderson, R. M. (2013). Contraception and Beyond: Health Benefits of Services Provided at Family Planning Centers. New York, NY: Guttmacher Institute, pp. 1–34.
Leekuan, P., Kane, R., Sukwong, P., and Kulnitichai, W. (2022). Understanding sexual and reproductive health from the perspective of late adolescents in Northern Thailand: A phenomenological study. Reproductive Health, 19, 230.
Lolekha, R., Boon-Yasidhi, V., Leowsrisook, P., Naiwatanakul, T., Durier, Y., Nuchanard, W., Tarugsa, J., Punpanich, W., Pattanasin, S., and Chokephaibulkit, K. (2015). Knowledge, attitudes, and practices regarding antiretroviral management, reproductive health, sexually transmitted infections, and sexual risk behavior among perinatally HIV-infected youth in Thailand. AIDS Care, 27(5), 618–628.
Moore, S., and Rosenthal, D. (2006). Sexuality In Adolescence, 2nd, London: University of Oxford, p. 304.
Mustapha, M. L., Odebode, A. A., and Adegboyega, L. O. (2017). Impact of premarital cohabitation on marital stability as expressed by married adults in Ilorin, Nigeria. Asia Pacific Journal of Multidisciplinary Research, 5(1), 112–121.
Musumari, P. M., Tangmunkongvorakul, A., Srithanaviboonchai, K., Yungyuankul, S., Techasrivichien, T., Suguimoto, S. P., Ono-Kihara, M., Kihara, M., and Chariyalertsak, S. (2016). Prevalence and correlates of HIV testing among young people enrolled in non-formal education centers in urban Chiang Mai, Thailand: A cross-sectional study. PLOS One, 11(4), e0153452.
Ngilangwa, D. P., Rajesh, S., Kawala, M., Mbeba, R., Sambili, B., Mkuwa, S., Noronha, R., Meremo, A. J., and Nyagero, J. (2016). Accessibility to sexual and reproductive health and rights education among marginalized youth in selected districts of Tanzania. The Pan African Medical Journal, 25(Suppl 2), 1–7.
Nursanti, D. P., Kumalasari, E. P., Setyaningsih, A., Siekmans, J., and Wabeke, V. (2022). Analysis of adolescent reproductive health knowledge of premarital sexual attitudes. Journal for Quality in Women’s Health, 5(2), 189–194.
Nwagwu, W. E. (2007). The internet as a source of reproductive health information among adolescent girls in an urban city in Nigeria. BMC Public Health, 7, 354.
Nwagwu, W. E. (2008). Effectiveness of sources of HIV/AIDS awareness in a rural community in Imo State, Nigeria. Health Information and Libraries Journal, 25(1), 38–45.
Odutola, A. B. (2003). Developing countries must invest in access to information for health improvements. Journal of Medical Internet Research, 5(1), e5.
Pasay-an, E., Magwilang J. O. G., and Pangket, P. P. (2020). Knowledge, attitudes, and practices of adolescents regarding sexuality and reproductive issues in the Cordillera administrative region of the Philippines. Makara Journal of Health Research, 24(3), 164–172.
Salam, R. A., Faqqah, A., Sajjad, N., Lassi, Z. S., Das, J. K., Kaufman, M., and Bhutta, Z. A. (2016). Improving adolescent sexual and reproductive health: A systematic review of potential interventions. Journal of Adolescent Health, 59(2), S11–S28.
Seif, S. A., Kohi, T. W., and Moshiro, C. S. (2019). Sexual and reproductive health communication intervention for caretakers of adolescents: A quasi-experimental study in Unguja- Zanzibar. Reproductive Health, 16, 92.
Senderowitz, J. (2000). A Review of Program Approaches to Adolescent Reproductive. Virginia: US Agency for International Development Bureau for Global Programs, pp. 1–67.
Shaw, D. (2009). Access to sexual and reproductive health for young people: Bridging the disconnect between rights and reality. International Journal of Gynecology and Obstetrics, 106(2), 132–136.
Vaismoradi, M., Turunen, H., and Bondas, T. (2013). Content analysis and thematic analysis: Implications for conducting a qualitative descriptive study. Nursing and Health Sciences, 15(3), 398–405.
Westberg, K. H., Nyholm, M., Nygren, J. M., and Svedberg, P. (2022). Mental health problems among young people—A scoping review of help-seeking. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 19(3), 1430.
WHO. (2020). Adolescent pregnancy: Evidence brief. Department of Reproductive Health and Research: World Health Organization, pp. 1–4.
Widyastari, D. A., Isarabhakdi, P., and Shaluhiyah, Z. (2015). “Women won’t get pregnant with one sexual intercourse” misconceptions in reproductive health knowledge among Indonesian young men. Journal of Health Research, 29(1), 63–69.
Widyatuti, Shabrina, C. H., and Nursasi, A. Y. (2018). Correlation between parent-adolescent communication and adolescents’ premarital sex risk. Enfermería Clínica, 28(Suppl 1), 51–54.
Witchel, S. F. (2018). Disorders of sex development. Best Practice & Research Clinical Obstetrics & Gynaecology, 48, 90–102.
Yau, S., Wongsawat, P., and Songthap, A. (2020). Knowledge, attitude and perception of risk and preventive behaviors toward premarital sexual practice among in-school adolescents. European Journal of Investigation in Health, Psychology and Education, 10(1), 497–510.