Knowledge and attitudes on contraception among the student population

U ovome radu istraživana su znanja i stavovi o kontracepciji među studentima Sveučilišta u Zagrebu te utjecaj različitih demografskih i odgojno-obrazovnih čimbenika na stavove. Istraživanje je uključilo 715 studenata s devet fakulteta Sveučilišta u Zagrebu. Ispitivanje je provedeno anonimnom anketom kojom su ispitani demografski podaci: godina studija, dob, spol, dob stupanja u spolne odnose, status veze i stupanj obrazovanja roditelja te podaci o načinu informiranja o kontracepciji. U drugome dijelu upitnika navedeno je osam tvrdnji o kontracepciji o kojima je ispitanik iznosio stavove Likertovom ljestvicom 1 – 4. U trećem dijelu upitnika navedeno je dvanaest tvrdnji o kontracepciji na koje je ispitanik odgovarao zaokružujući točno (T) ili netočno (N). Ovim istraživanjem pokazano je da studenti smatraju da je redovita uporaba kontracepcije indikator odgovornog spolnog ponašanja pojedinca te čimbenik kojim partner potiče partnera na uporabu kontracepcije. Studenti imaju dobro znanje o preventivnim učincima redovite uporabe kontracepcije, ali slabo znanje o hitnoj kontracepciji i nekontracepcijskim dobrobitima kontracepcije. Isto tako, pokazalo se da informiranje studenata putem razumljive stručne literature značajno utječe na redovitu uporabu kontracepcije. Stav je većine u našoj istraživanoj populaciji da se višekratnom mogućnošću primjene oralne hitne kontracepcije povećava vjerojatnost od neodgovornog spolnog ponašanja partnera. Zabilježili smo da tek svaki šesti student razgovara s roditeljima o uporabi kontraceptivnih sredstava. Zaključno, identificirane različitosti u znanjima i stavovima iz ovog istraživanja koristit će se za daljnju edukaciju i diskusiju sa širom studentskom populacijom o kontracepciji i planiranju obitelji.This study aimed to explore knowledge and attitudes towards contraception among students of the University of Zagreb as well as the impact of different demographic and educational factors on the attitudes. The study included 715 students from nine faculties of the University of Zagreb. The investigation was conducted by an anonymous survey that analyzed demographic data about: year of study, age, gender, age of first sexual intercourse, relationship status, parental education level and information about receiving contraceptive information. The attitudes on eight claims regarding contraception were tested using Likert scale 1 - 4. The knowledge about contraception was tested by twelve claims which were considered as true or false. This study observed that students consider regular use of contraceptives as an indicator of responsible sexual behavior of the individual as well as that partner-partner encouragement is important for contraception usage. A knowledge about preventative effects of regular use of contraceptives is much better than a knowledge about emergency contraception and non-contraceptive benefits of contraception. We also demonstrated that informing students on contraception through comprehensible professional literature significantly influences the regular use of contraception. The majority of our research population shared the opinion that the repeated usage of oral emergency oral contraceptives increases the risk of irresponsible sexual behavior. We noted that only every sixth student discusses contraception with their parents. In conclusion, the differences in the knowledge and attitudes towards contraception and family planning identified in this research will be used for educational purposes and for the open discussions among students