Alcohol Use and Health in Young Women

描述(由申请者提供)：媒体报道称，青少年之间的“勾搭”(不期待恋爱承诺的伴侣之间的性行为)正在增加，导致无保护的性行为风险行为，心理健康状况变差，性传播疾病(STD)的风险增加。然而，很少有关于勾搭的科学调查。已经完成的大多数研究都是描述性的或定性的，使用了不同的勾搭定义；几乎没有发表的研究使用纵向设计来探索性勾搭的预测因素和后果。为了解决这些文献中的漏洞，拟议的研究计划将：(1)记录具有代表性的女性青少年从高中过渡到大学期间的渗透性勾搭的流行率；(2)确定渗透性勾搭的前置因素，包括理论上和经验上建议的行为风险因素(例如，酒精使用)、个人变量和社会环境条件，这些因素对性勾搭的影响；(3)探索急性事件期间和大学一年级以上饮酒与性勾搭之间的纵向关系；以及(4)评估穿透性勾搭对三种健康结果的影响：不受欢迎的性经历/性侵犯、性病发病率和心理健康(例如抑郁症状、自尊、心身症状)。为了实现这些目标，我们将在大学第一学期之前立即招募500名女性青少年；在研究开始时，参与者将提供有关既往性行为(包括勾搭)的信息，以及几个假设的未来勾搭的预测因素(例如，与酒精相关的行为和预期、个人特征和社会因素)。在接下来的一年里，将每月联系参与者，评估性勾搭和酒精使用行为、精神健康标记物和不想要的性接触经历；此外，所有参与者都将接受两种性传播疾病的测试。通过这个纵向设计获得的数据将使用潜在增长曲线模型进行分析，这将允许测试关于性勾搭的前因和结果的先验假设，特别强调酒精使用的共同发生。这项研究将对渗透性勾搭对身心健康的影响进行第一次大规模的纵向调查，为晚期青少年的健康促进和疾病预防工作提供信息。 与公共健康相关：这项拟议的研究将调查年轻女性在大学第一年过渡期的性行为。我们将衡量勾搭的流行率，明确增加性勾搭风险的个人和情景因素，并探索勾搭对心理和身体健康的影响。这项研究将告知年轻人、父母和教育工作者，并促进制定促进年轻女性健康的干预措施。

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): Media reports suggest that "hookups" (sexual encounters between partners who have no expectation of a romantic commitment) are increasing among adolescents, resulting in unprotected sexual risk behavior, poorer mental health, and increased risk for sexually transmitted disease (STD). However, there have been few scientific investigations of hookups. The majority of studies that have been completed have been descriptive or qualitative and have used varying definitions of hookups; virtually no published research has investigated the predictors and consequences of sexual hookups using a longitudinal design. To address these lacunae in the literature, the proposed program of research will: (1) document the prevalence of penetrative sexual hookups in a representative sample of female adolescents as they transition from high school to college; (2) identify the antecedents of penetrative sexual hookups, including theoretically- and empirically-suggested behavioral risk factors (i.e., alcohol use), person variables, and social-environmental conditions that influence sexual hookups; (3) explore the longitudinal relationship between alcohol use and sexual hookups during acute events and over the first year of college; and (4) evaluate the effects of penetrative sexual hookups on three health outcomes: unwanted sexual experiences/sexual assault, STD incidence, and mental health (e.g., depressive symptoms, self-esteem, psychosomatic symptoms). To achieve these goals, we will recruit 500 female adolescents immediately prior to their first semester in college; at study entry, participants will provide information regarding prior sexual behavior (including hookups) and several hypothesized predictors (e.g., alcohol-related behavior and expectancies, personal characteristics, and social factors) of future hookups. Participants will be contacted monthly over the next year to assess sexual hookups and alcohol use behavior, mental health markers, and experience of unwanted sexual contact; in addition, all participants will be tested for two STDs. The data obtained with this longitudinal design will be analyzed using latent growth curve modeling, which will permit testing of a priori hypotheses regarding the antecedents and consequences of sexual hookups, with special emphasis on the co-occurrence of alcohol use. This study will provide the first large-scale, longitudinal investigation into the physical and mental health consequences of penetrative sex hookups, to inform health promotion and disease prevention efforts for late adolescents. PUBLIC HEALTH RELEVANCE: The proposed research will investigate sexual hookups among young women during the transitional first year of college. We will measure the prevalence of hookups, specify the personal and situational factors that increase the risk of sexual hookups, and explore the mental and physical health consequences of hookups. This research will inform young people, parents, and educators, and facilitate the development of interventions to promote the health of young women.