Health Policy Research Group, College of Medicine, University of Nigeria Ituku Ozalla, Enugu State, Nigeria.
Department of Community Medicine, Alex Ekwueme Federal University Teaching Hospital, Abakaliki, Ebonyi State, Nigeria.
Afr J Reprod Health. 2024 Aug 31;28(8s):83-92. doi: 10.29063/ajrh2024/v28i8s.9.
Individual experiences, social policies, and environmental exposure shape beliefs, norms and ideologies about sexuality. The objective of this study was to determine the effectiveness of a school health club training programme in improving adolescents' knowledge and perceptions of gender norms and ideologies about sexuality. This was an intervention study among in-school adolescent boys and girls in 12 secondary schools in Ebonyi State, southeast Nigeria. The intervention was the establishment of school health clubs in six schools (intervention), while the six other schools served as controls that did not have school health clubs. Data was collected using a pre-tested interviewer-administered questionnaire. Bivariate and multivariate logistic regression analyses were used to analyse the data. More than half of the adolescents in the intervention (58.3%) and non-intervention (56.1%) schools believed that men need sex more than women. About 90% of adolescents in school (in both arms) agreed that both boys and girls should remain virgins until marriage. Majority of adolescents in both intervention and non-intervention schools disagreed with the notion that "it is justifiable for a boy to hit his girlfriend". Female gender (OR: 1.6; CI 1.1-2.4), senior secondary school level (OR: 1.6; CI 1.0-2.5), and urban residence (OR: 1.7; CI: 1.1-2.5) were associated with the perception that boys do not respect girls who agree to have sex with them. Working for pay decreases the likelihood of having the perception that girls should remain virgin until they marry (OR: 0.4; CI: 0.2-0.9), while living in the urban area increases the likelihood of having the perception that boys should remain virgins until marriage (OR: 2.1; 1.1-4.1). Female gender (OR: 0.7; CI: 0.5-1.0) and urban residence (OR: 0.6; 0.4-0.9) decrease the likelihood of having the perception that men need sex more frequently than women do. In the intervention arm, female gender was associated with perception that boys do not respect girls who agree to have sex with them (OR: 2.4; CI: 1.3-4.3) while older age was associated with the perception that men need sex more frequently than women in the intervention arm (OR:1.2; CI:1.0-1.4). No predictor was found in the non-intervention arm. Although both intervention and non-intervention arms had positive perceptions of gendered sexual norms and ideologies, a school health club-based intervention could influence the drivers of these norms.
个体经历、社会政策和环境暴露塑造了人们对性的信仰、规范和意识形态。本研究旨在确定学校健康俱乐部培训计划在提高青少年对性别规范和性观念的认识方面的有效性。这是在尼日利亚东南部埃邦伊州 12 所中学的在校青少年男孩和女孩中进行的一项干预研究。干预措施是在六所学校（干预组）建立学校健康俱乐部，而其他六所学校作为没有学校健康俱乐部的对照组。数据收集使用了经过预测试的访谈式问卷调查。使用双变量和多变量逻辑回归分析来分析数据。干预组和非干预组的大多数青少年（分别为 58.3%和 56.1%）都认为男性比女性更需要性。大约 90%的在校青少年（无论干预组还是非干预组）都认为男孩和女孩都应该保持童贞直到结婚。大多数干预组和非干预组的青少年都不同意“男孩打女朋友是可以原谅的”这一观点。女性性别（OR：1.6；CI：1.1-2.4）、高中水平（OR：1.6；CI：1.0-2.5）和城市居住（OR：1.7；CI：1.1-2.5）与男孩不尊重同意与他们发生性关系的女孩的观点有关。有偿工作降低了认为女孩应该保持童贞直到结婚的可能性（OR：0.4；CI：0.2-0.9），而居住在城市地区则增加了认为男孩应该保持童贞直到结婚的可能性（OR：2.1；1.1-4.1）。女性性别（OR：0.7；CI：0.5-1.0）和城市居住（OR：0.6；0.4-0.9）降低了认为男性比女性更频繁地需要性的可能性。在干预组中，女性性别与男孩不尊重同意与他们发生性关系的女孩的观点有关（OR：2.4；CI：1.3-4.3），而年龄较大与干预组中认为男性比女性更频繁地需要性的观点有关（OR：1.2；CI：1.0-1.4）。在非干预组中没有发现预测因素。尽管干预组和非干预组都对性别化的性规范和意识形态有积极的看法，但以学校健康俱乐部为基础的干预措施可能会影响这些规范的驱动因素。
