Influencing A Partner to Use a Condom

Abstract

Little is known about the influence strategies that young heterosexual adults use to persuade a new sexual partner to use or avoid the use of condoms. College students' ( N = 393) opinions about and experiences with six condom power strategies were examined. Overall, students gender-typed the strategies as “feminine” when the goal was to persuade a partner to use condoms and as “masculine” when trying to avoid condom use. Effectiveness and comfort ratings of the strategies varied both by students' gender and the particular tactic being evaluated. Gender differences also emerged in students' actual experiences with the strategies. When trying to encourage condom use, men utilized seduction most often; whereas, withholding sex was the most popular tactic used by women. For avoiding condom use, men were more likely than women to employ seduction, reward, and information. Implications for understanding the impact of gender and social influence in the domain of condom use are discussed.