The Social Ecology Of Men's Sexual Self-Efficacy In The Mississippi Delta

Mississippi often has some of the highest rates of teenage pregnancy and sexually transmitted diseases and infections in the country. To combat this, the state uses abstinence-based sexual education in an attempt to discourage young people from having sex. I conducted 27 interviews and one focus group to talk with young men in the Mississippi Delta about their opinions on birth control. Using the social ecological model and self-efficacy framework, this thesis considers the influences on young men that shape their attitudes and behaviors regarding sexual health topics such as birth control. Primary findings include their learning from teachers, parents, and peers, coupled with a general mistrust of their female partners and female birth control methods. Additionally, young men seemed very confident in their perceived sexual self-efficacy, yet they demonstrated limited knowledge, and they expressed a desire to learn more about sexual health.

Name thesis:degree_name

M.A. in Sociology

Level thesis:degree_level

Thesis

Discipline thesis:degree_discipline

Sociology and Anthropology

Year dc:date.available

2014

Author dc:creator

• Parks, Vanessa Ann

Contributors dc:contributor

• John J. Green
• Jeffrey Jackson
• Kirsten Dellinger

• Contraceptives
• Education
• Mississippi
• Self-Efficacy
• Sexual Health
• Social Ecological Model
• Sociology

Repository record dc:identifier

https://egrove.olemiss.edu/etd/857

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:egrove.olemiss.edu:etd-1856