Risk perceptions, misperceptions and sexual behaviours among young heterosexual people with gonorrhoea in Perth, Western Australia
Background: Notification rates of gonorrhoea in Australia for heterosexual young adults rose by 63% between 2012 and 2016. In Western Australian major cities, there was a 612% increase among non-Aboriginal females and a 358% increase in non-Aboriginal males in the ten-year period 2007-2016. A qualit...
| Main Authors: | , , , |
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| Format: | Journal Article |
| Language: | English |
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2020
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| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/96529 |
| _version_ | 1848766165810151424 |
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| author | Lobo, Roanna Rayson, J. Hallett, Jonathan Mak, D.B. |
| author_facet | Lobo, Roanna Rayson, J. Hallett, Jonathan Mak, D.B. |
| author_sort | Lobo, Roanna |
| building | Curtin Institutional Repository |
| collection | Online Access |
| description | Background: Notification rates of gonorrhoea in Australia for heterosexual young adults rose by 63% between 2012 and 2016. In Western Australian major cities, there was a 612% increase among non-Aboriginal females and a 358% increase in non-Aboriginal males in the ten-year period 2007-2016. A qualitative public health investigation was initiated to inform appropriate action. Methods: Eighteen semi-structured telephone interviews were conducted with non-Aboriginal heterosexual young adults aged 18-34 years living in Perth, Western Australia, who had recently been notified to the Department of Health with gonorrhoea, to explore the context of their sexual interactions and lifestyles which could have predisposed them to contracting gonorrhoea. Data were thematically analysed. Results: Common themes were having several casual sexual partners, limited communication between sexual partners about condom use or sexual history prior to engaging in sexual activity, inconsistent condom use, normalisation of some sexually transmissible infections amongst young people, and poor understandings and assessment of sexually transmissible infection risk. Conclusion: The findings support public health interventions that focus on communication between sexual partners and shifting of risk perceptions in sexual health education programs, ensuring accessibility of quality sexual health information, increasing condom accessibility and acceptability, and on strategies for addressing misperceptions of young people in relation to sexually transmitted infections. |
| first_indexed | 2025-11-14T11:46:49Z |
| format | Journal Article |
| id | curtin-20.500.11937-96529 |
| institution | Curtin University Malaysia |
| institution_category | Local University |
| language | eng |
| last_indexed | 2025-11-14T11:46:49Z |
| publishDate | 2020 |
| recordtype | eprints |
| repository_type | Digital Repository |
| spelling | curtin-20.500.11937-965292025-01-17T00:11:46Z Risk perceptions, misperceptions and sexual behaviours among young heterosexual people with gonorrhoea in Perth, Western Australia Lobo, Roanna Rayson, J. Hallett, Jonathan Mak, D.B. Australia gonorrhoea heterosexual non-Aboriginal qualitative sexual behaviour sexually transmitted infections young adults Adult Female Gonorrhea Heterosexuality Humans Male Public Health Risk Factors Sexual Behavior Sexual Health Sexual Partners Western Australia Young Adult Humans Gonorrhea Risk Factors Sexual Behavior Heterosexuality Public Health Adult Sexual Partners Western Australia Female Male Young Adult Sexual Health Background: Notification rates of gonorrhoea in Australia for heterosexual young adults rose by 63% between 2012 and 2016. In Western Australian major cities, there was a 612% increase among non-Aboriginal females and a 358% increase in non-Aboriginal males in the ten-year period 2007-2016. A qualitative public health investigation was initiated to inform appropriate action. Methods: Eighteen semi-structured telephone interviews were conducted with non-Aboriginal heterosexual young adults aged 18-34 years living in Perth, Western Australia, who had recently been notified to the Department of Health with gonorrhoea, to explore the context of their sexual interactions and lifestyles which could have predisposed them to contracting gonorrhoea. Data were thematically analysed. Results: Common themes were having several casual sexual partners, limited communication between sexual partners about condom use or sexual history prior to engaging in sexual activity, inconsistent condom use, normalisation of some sexually transmissible infections amongst young people, and poor understandings and assessment of sexually transmissible infection risk. Conclusion: The findings support public health interventions that focus on communication between sexual partners and shifting of risk perceptions in sexual health education programs, ensuring accessibility of quality sexual health information, increasing condom accessibility and acceptability, and on strategies for addressing misperceptions of young people in relation to sexually transmitted infections. 2020 Journal Article http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/96529 10.33321/cdi.2020.44.41 eng http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/ fulltext |
| spellingShingle | Australia gonorrhoea heterosexual non-Aboriginal qualitative sexual behaviour sexually transmitted infections young adults Adult Female Gonorrhea Heterosexuality Humans Male Public Health Risk Factors Sexual Behavior Sexual Health Sexual Partners Western Australia Young Adult Humans Gonorrhea Risk Factors Sexual Behavior Heterosexuality Public Health Adult Sexual Partners Western Australia Female Male Young Adult Sexual Health Lobo, Roanna Rayson, J. Hallett, Jonathan Mak, D.B. Risk perceptions, misperceptions and sexual behaviours among young heterosexual people with gonorrhoea in Perth, Western Australia |
| title | Risk perceptions, misperceptions and sexual behaviours among young heterosexual people with gonorrhoea in Perth, Western Australia |
| title_full | Risk perceptions, misperceptions and sexual behaviours among young heterosexual people with gonorrhoea in Perth, Western Australia |
| title_fullStr | Risk perceptions, misperceptions and sexual behaviours among young heterosexual people with gonorrhoea in Perth, Western Australia |
| title_full_unstemmed | Risk perceptions, misperceptions and sexual behaviours among young heterosexual people with gonorrhoea in Perth, Western Australia |
| title_short | Risk perceptions, misperceptions and sexual behaviours among young heterosexual people with gonorrhoea in Perth, Western Australia |
| title_sort | risk perceptions, misperceptions and sexual behaviours among young heterosexual people with gonorrhoea in perth, western australia |
| topic | Australia gonorrhoea heterosexual non-Aboriginal qualitative sexual behaviour sexually transmitted infections young adults Adult Female Gonorrhea Heterosexuality Humans Male Public Health Risk Factors Sexual Behavior Sexual Health Sexual Partners Western Australia Young Adult Humans Gonorrhea Risk Factors Sexual Behavior Heterosexuality Public Health Adult Sexual Partners Western Australia Female Male Young Adult Sexual Health |
| url | http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/96529 |