Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2003 Apr;3(1):7-14.

Family communication about HIV/AIDS and sexual behaviour among senior secondary school students in Accra, Ghana

Samuel Adu-Mireku  1
Affiliations

Family communication about HIV/AIDS and sexual behaviour among senior secondary school students in Accra, Ghana

Samuel Adu-Mireku. Afr Health Sci. 2003 Apr.

Abstract

Background: Sexually active adolescents in Ghana are increasingly at risk of HIV and other sexually transmitted infections. As a primary agent of socialization, the family can exert a strong influence on adolescent sexual behaviour. Therefore, to aid in the design and implementation of effective prevention programmes, it is important to understand the role of the family in influencing sexual behaviour among school-going adolescents.

Objectives: To evaluate the relationship between family communications about HIV/AIDS and sexual activity and condom use among school-going adolescents in Accra, Ghana.

Method: A sample of 894 students (56.9% girls, 43.1% boys; mean age = 17.4 years, SD = 1.40) at two senior secondary schools in Accra completed a modified version of the Youth Risk Behavior Survey (YRBS) questionnaire, a self-administered instrument developed by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Analytical techniques utilized included logistic regression and chi-square.

Results: Twenty-five percent of the participants reported being sexually experienced, and 73.6% had talked about HIV/AIDS with parents or other family members. Of the sexually experienced students, 64.7% initiated first sexual intercourse by age 16; and 55.7% did not use a condom at last sexual intercourse. Bivariate analysis showed significant gender differences in sexual activity, condom use, and family communication about HIV/AIDS. Logistic regression analysis showed that student-family communication about HIV/AIDS was not associated with sexual activity. However, communication about HIV/AIDS between students and parents or other family members increased the odds of using a condom at last sexual intercourse.

Conclusions: The findings of this study suggest that prevention programmes that seek to educate Ghanaian school-going adolescents about sexual risk behaviour must strongly encourage communication about HIV/AIDS between students and family members.

PubMed Disclaimer

References

    1. Young people and HIV/AIDS: Opportunity in crisis. [6 September 2002]. UNAIDS web site: http://www.unaids.org/barcelona/presskit/youngpeople/index.html.
    1. Ghana: Joint Country Mission Report UNAIDS. [6 September 2002]. (International Partnership against AIDS in Africa) web site: http://www.unaids.org/hivaidsinfo/statistics/fact_sheets/pdfs/Ghana_en.pdf.
    1. Adih WK, Alexander CS. Determinants of condom use to prevent HIV infection among youth in Ghana. J Adolesc Health. 1999;24:63–72. - PubMed
    1. Agyei WKA, Biritwum RB, Ashitey AG, Hill RB. Sexual behaviour and contraception among unmarried adolescents and young adults in Greater Accra and Eastern regions of Ghana. J Biosoc Sci. 2000;32:495–512. - PubMed
    1. Anarfi JK. Vulnerability to sexually transmitted disease: Street children in Accra. Health Transition Review. 1997;7(Suppl):281–306. - PubMed