No Glove, No Love: Predicting Condom Use Behaviors from Implicit and Explicit Attitudes and Psychological Flexibility

College students engage in a variety of sexual behaviors with more partners than in the past, often without protection. Condoms are an easily accessible means of sexual protection, but they are often used inconsistently by college students (Murray & Miller, 2000). Although students are generally aware of the consequences of unprotected sex, this awareness does not strongly influence condom use (Prince & Bernard, 1998). Research has shown that attitudes about sex may be more influential on sexual behavior than knowledge about high-risk behavior. Negative attitudes about condoms have been linked to the avoidance of condom use, but there have been inconclusive results regarding their ability to predict sexual behavior (Gabler et al., 2004). It may be that attitudes have differential effects on behavior, depending on how students cope with uncomfortable experiences. For example, no prior studies have examined students’ flexibility with these attitudes. This study will measure how students’ psychological flexibility interacts with attitudes regarding condom use to determine whether or not these variables can be used to predict students’ condom use behavior in the following two weeks