Do Alcohol and Marijuana Use Decrease the Probability of Condom Use for College Women

This article explores the association between alcohol and marijuana use and the probability of condom use for college women. The study concludes that alcohol consumption decreases the likelihood of condom use, while marijuana use may result in unprotected sex in specific events.

Running Head: PSCYCHOLOGY 0
Do Alcohol and Marijuana Use Decrease the Probability of Condom Use for
College Women
Student name
1-23-2019

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“Do Alcohol and Marijuana Use Decrease the Probability of
Condom Use for College Women”
According to Wilson et al, as cited in the article (Fielder, Carey, Waish, & Carey, 2014),
youth between the age group of 15 to 24 are cause for HIV infections to 50% and are also at the
risk of other STI’s (sexually transmitted infections). Moreover, according to CDC, the use of a
condom is a relevant way to minimize the risk of these diseases and unwanted pregnancy.
Cooper as cited in (as cited in Fielder, et al., 2014) says that the marijuana and use of alcohol are
the cause to enhance the sexual risk-taking and various other studies have found that risk with
sex and this substance consumption has a direct association. However, some studies have
contradicted, but the sample used in the prior studies were limited. To clarify the discussion, the
article considered large sample size and primary data from women going college across a year to
assess if there is an association between marijuana and alcohol consumption and use of a
condom while considering the assessment in detail of sexual partner type and include various
control variables (Fielder, Carey, Waish, & Carey, 2014).
There have been various reviews over the alcohol use and use of a condom, according to
Carey et al has concluded that the when the individual see sober, they are more likely to use the
condom than when they are drunk. From previous research and evidence, the type of partner has
been linked, Scott said that the people are not likely to use condom when they are drunk only in
the case of their romantic or steady partners, and another author that is Brown has concluded that
they are not likely to use condom when drunk only with the casual partners. However, some
believe that the use of condom after alcohol consumption is not related to the partner type, but
related to the way of consumption, for instance, using dichotomous meters of consumption
(Fielder, Carey, Waish, & Carey, 2014).
Experiment
Mixed analysis from the literature, make the research objective of the article to be
explored to the topic further. As already discussed, the large sample would be considered, in
which the four research questions included the event level drinking, association of Marijuana
intake and use of condom during intercourse, the association of alcohol intake and use of

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condom during intercourse, the association of the two on the basis of type of partner, and lastly
that the moderate expectancies of alcohol-associated among drinking, number of drinks, and
HED and use of condom?
The participants in the experiment include 483 women from college students of the first
year at a university of northeastern, who were engaged in long relationships. The procedure
includes the word of mouth, campus flyers. The survey was taken from the participant who is
willing and interested in answering and providing the relevant information. The measures for the
research included event level in which condom use, alcohol consumption, and HED, marijuana
use, partner type, relationship length, and alternative contraception were included. Moreover,
person level was taken for a measure which included average HED, average marijuana intake,
risk expectancies of alcohol sexual, impulsivity, sensation seeking, and control variables. Results
from rates of drinking, marijuana use, heavy episodic drinking, and condom use according to
partner type (Fielder, Carey, Waish, & Carey, 2014).
Figure 1:( Source: (Fielder, Carey, Waish, & Carey, 2014)

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From the figure, the percentage of different types of events with partner types that are
included any HED, drinking or use of marijuana. The association tested among the control
variables and use of a condom to understand the variable which is relevant to consider in the
substance models. The results included the twenty percent of participants were involved in
drinking, thirteen percent were involved in the HED, and six percent were involved in the use of
marijuana. All the different substance use were lower for the romantic couples that the casual
ones. The new romantic partner’s chances of substance use were higher than that of established
romantic partners (Fielder, Carey, Waish, & Carey, 2014).
Figure 2: (Source: (Fielder, Carey, Waish, & Carey, 2014)
According to the above figure 2, use of condom among women during the events were
61%, the use of condom was lower that was 58% in events involved with romantic partners, that
in casual partners were 72%. Females were least interested in the use of protection when it

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comes to romantic partners, and majorly used the increase to 74% when it comes to being
involved with acquaintances and friends (Fielder, Carey, Waish, & Carey, 2014).
Drinking as a predictor of use of a condom, the model contained the consumption of
alcohol and use of condom wing not controlling variables indicated that the events that include
consumption were more likely to consider the use of a condom. It was used around seventy
percent with drinking involved events and 59% use when not drunk. Result considering heavy
episodic consumption as a predictor of use of condom, model including HED and use of condom
without controlling variable resulted that the use of condom was more likely when the events
involving the HED, the use of condom for an event involving HED were 70% and without HED
were 60%. However, the statistics were not considered when the operation type constraint was
accounted. A controlled model was showing no such association with HED and use of a condom.
The result from a number of drinks as an indicator for use of a condom, the association among
the number of drinks and use of condom were explored for the event including consumption of
alcohol. A model that includes a number of drinks only and no other control variable is
considered, it resulted that a negative relationship among the drinking level and the use of
condom were found. This means, that women who a drunk a number of drinks are less likely to
use a condom (Fielder, Carey, Waish, & Carey, 2014).

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Figure 3:( Source: (Fielder, Carey, Waish, & Carey, 2014)
Discussion
This study included the research from a large sample of women of first-year college
students. This was to clarify if there is any relation or association between the consumption of
marijuana and alcohol and use of condom for sexually involved with the partner. The literature
was not clarified as the results from different studies tend to be different for one another and
were contradicting, which makes the exploration to be conducted for the topic. In this research,
the sample was large to make the results more reliable and valid from the college going girls,
who were involved physically with their partner in intercourse. The dependency was over the
type of partner that is the established romantic partner, casual partners, involvement with a
friend, and newly romantic partners. Moreover, the other constraints were the level of
consumptions that is the number of drinks. It was observed that the risk of unsafe sec would
increase with the established romantic partners than another. The results for marijuana were
similar to that of alcohol consumption in case of use of a condom in various events.

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The association among the use of alcohol consumption and use of a condom, the
literature for this association indicated few major alcoholic effects on the use of a condom. The
use of marijuana does not indicate a major association among the two aspects. When the number
of drinks is considered, it showed that the women, when drunk to a large number of drinks, that
the probability of use of condom decreased. Moreover, considering the type of partner the
chances of unprotected sex increase in the case of casual sex or involvement with a friend than
that of well-established romantic partners. Considering the sensation seeking, impulsivity and
other control variables, from the study it was clear that the relevance of event-level variables like
alternative contraception and partner type used in the use of condom explanation. However,
considering the person level variables were considered to be relevant while predictions of event-
level use of a condom. Nevertheless, it can be said that the impulsivity is another relevant factor
among this case, of bothering the consumption of alcohol and risk-taking sexually as provided by
Justus et al, although bother were not related to the use of a condom.
Therefore, it can be said that the research was based on various events for the result of
examining the association of marijuana and alcohol and condom use. The study resulted in a
negative relationship with the number of alcohol consumed and the use of a condom while
sexually connected to the partners for some. Moreover, it was concluded that the marijuana use
could result in unprotected sex due in specific events like a particular type of partner that is
established, romantic partners. The findings of the research paper also concluded that the effort
for diminishing the consumption of alcohol along with sexual risk-taking could indicate the
response of dose in the relationship of drinking and use of condom after a partner decides to
drink.
References
Fielder, R., Carey, K., Waish, J., & Carey, M. (2014). Do alcohol and marijuana use decrease the
probability of condom use for college women? The Journal of Sex Research, 51(2), 145-
158.

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